Now We've Got Bad Blood
by tay0720
Summary: Fresh off the plane from Seattle, Beca Mitchell heads to Barden University for her first year of college only to find herself falling hard for a junior named Chloe while being roped into a supernatural shitstorm. Canon compliant to a degree. Includes sections of actual movie dialogue. (Warnings for certain elements will be posted at the beginning of chapters as necessary)
1. Welcome To Barden

**Chapter 1: ****Welcome to Barden**

The tires screeched against the tarmac and the plane's cabin jostled roughly. Beca Mitchell's head snapped upward off her fist as she awoke. She yawned quietly, covering her mouth with one hand while removing her headphones with the other.

Big mistake.

_Waaaaaaah!_ That damn baby eight rows back…

Beca sighed heavily, frustrated, rubbing her face. "God…"

She never understood why parents did that to their children; or to the other passengers on the plane, for that matter. Early morning flights were already awful and to add in shrieking children, that was certainly not how Beca had wanted to start her day.

As the plane rolled along the tarmac towards its gate, the loudspeaker crackled to life.

"_Ladies and gentlemen, this is your Captain speaking. On behalf of the flight crew and Delta Airlines, we'd like to thank you for choosing to fly with us today. We'd like to remind everyone to please stay in your seats with your seatbelts fastened until we are completely stopped at our gate, but in the meantime, please feel free to turn on your cell phones. We hope you enjoy your time here in Atlanta, and if this isn't your final destination, we wish you continued safe travels."_

The plane slowed to a stop a few minutes later and Beca was up like a shot, her bag in hand. She knew she was being one of those obnoxious, impatient passengers, but she also knew she needed to get off that damn plane and away from these people. She hadn't slept well the night before and the quality of sleep on plane rides, at least for her, had never been high.

As soon as the flight attendants had the door opened, she was out in the aisle and briskly moving toward the exit. Years of flying across the country every few months to visit her dad after her parents' divorce had taught Beca to always choose an aisle seat near the front; always and only bring a backpack with the essentials onboard. She'd never been in the scouts, but she was definitely prepared. She offered the flight crew a curt but sincere thanks and headed up the humidity laden jetway.

The cool blast of the air conditioner was welcome until she stepped further into the semi crowded gate area where the recirculated air, full of perfumes and b.o. and various food smells, conspired together to envelop and suffocate a person in the worst way.

Beca tugged her bag up a little higher on her back and picked up her pace a little bit, uncaring of whether she looked like a woman possessed. She took shallow breaths from her mouth only when necessary and made a beeline directly to Baggage Claim.

20 minutes and struggling somewhat to get two large suitcases off the baggage claim and a few smaller bags later, Beca was sweltering in an unusually long taxi line. August in Atlanta was miserable. She missed Seattle's balmy, salty air already. The only blessing was that there was a bit of an overhang to shade her, and a few benches to sit on. She took off her thin plaid flannel and tied it around waist and tied her hair back a little more.

She had taken out her laptop to finish a new mix she started the night before—for some reason Young MC's "Bust a Move" had been stuck in her head—and it was pure coincidence that it afforded her the opportunity to not have to indulge the woman behind her in line with small talk. Like hell she'd be the sacrificial lamb to that sanity slaughter.

The line moved at a decent enough pace while she was invested in her mix and just as she was exporting it to her desktop, her cab pulled up. Beca shut down the computer and put it back in her bag, feeling better at having finished it. She didn't mind leaving books or homework or even meals unfinished, but when it came to her music? She became borderline anxious when she knew a project wasn't complete.

She pushed her luggage cart towards the car and offered the driver a quick smile and thanks before getting into the backseat. The car was clean enough; didn't have that funky smell some cabs have, for which she was eternally grateful. After being stuck on a plane for hours and walking through the airport's dense musk, then being surrounded by exhaust fumes and diesel smoke from the parking shuttles and busses, a Febreze fresh car was a welcome reprieve.

The driver—Roger, according to his license copy posted behind his headrest—returned to his seat and buckled up.

"Where to?"

Beca sighed and looked out the window to her right.

"Barden University."

"Here we are, kid," Roger said as he found an open spot on a curb in the Move In Weekend chaos. "Barden U."

"Thanks," Beca replied while handing him her fare plus an extra $20 for tip.

As she opened the door and exited the vehicle to the curb, Roger popped the trunk before getting out and helping the already waiting, gold polo wearing upperclassman with the baggage cart.

She stretched a little as she walked outside the car and took in the scene. The sun was still out, but there was a nice small breeze blowing through over here. Barden University was picturesque enough, Beca supposed. Trees, wrought iron, nice landscaping, classic southern architecture…though she did get more of a Louisiana feel from the campus, which was a little weird. She'd been to Baton Rouge once, a long time ago. It was as if they transplanted a college from there and plopped it in a suburb of Atlanta.

She grabbed her backpack from the trunk, slinging it over her shoulder before taking in the more hectic view of the cars and bodies trying to avoid one another on the housing streets.

"Hi there!"

Beca jumped a little as a strawberry blonde girl wearing a green polo with an overly large B.U. seal on it seemed to materialize out of nowhere with a handful of pamphlets and whistles.

"Welcome to Barden University! What dorm?"

"Uh," Beca struggled to recall the name of her dorm for a moment while her heart rate returned to normal. "Baker Hall, I think."

The girl nodded enthusiastically and launched into a series of directions that, frankly, Beca didn't care to listen to.

A slate gray sedan screeched to a stop next to them to avoid a flock of students with their arms full of boxes and bedding, paying little attention to traffic. Beca glanced over as she heard the car's radio blaring out an old rock song and one of the passengers yell-singing along with it.

A guy—probably around her age with short, dark and slightly unkempt hair—scanned his eyes to his right out the window, still singing, and spotted her. Apparently he decided she was the perfect audience because he turned his entire body and "adjusted" his air guitar accordingly before diving into his solo, riffing and whammy barring at her until his dad slammed on the gas, sending his son careening into the seat as he drove away.

She probably would have laughed a little if the over achieving campus helper hadn't turned back towards her.

"Here's your campus map and your official B.U. rape whistle!" She handed off the pamphlet and dangled the whistle in front of Beca. "Don't blow it unless it's actually happening," the girl said with a smile.

Beca took the whistle and immediately put it between her teeth with a tiny smirk on her face, barely taking her eyes off the girl before walking away. Strawberry blonde was entirely unimpressed if the noise she made in the back of her throat and the tight smile said anything.

She and her gold shirted helper walked along the sidewalks in silence toward Baker Hall; Beca merely taking in the craziness of other freshmen practically tripping over themselves (and each other) looking at their new surroundings.

She noticed a group of guys in camping chairs holding up paper numbers and yelling out their idea of astute and complimentary commentary at various girls that walked past. Beca rolled her eyes and let an incredibly sarcastic smile cross her lips before continuing into the residence hall to receive her rooming assignment. Thankfully the line had only a few people waiting and her turn came quickly.

She stepped up to the table and gave her name to yet another girl wearing a green polo.

"Ah, yes. Well, Beca, the school originally had you with a roommate, but she made a last minute request to be paired with someone more…" the girl allowed an uncomfortable look pass over her face before continuing. "Culturally similar. So we've moved you into a single dorm! Second floor, room 224. The elevators are straight down this hall and your room will be down the second hall on the right. The movers got here before you and we took them right up so they could leave your boxes for you. Have a great day, Beca, and welcome to Barden!"

She handed Beca the keys to her room and mailbox with a genuine smile and signaled for the next person in line.

Once all of her bags had been dropped off in her room, and she double checked that all of her boxes had, in fact, arrived, Beca went for a quick shower. She always felt dirty after flying and after being outside in the humidity for so long waiting for her taxi, at least a rinse was in order.

She was back in her room 15 minutes later and changed into a fresh, crimson tank top and gray skinny jeans while also taking a few seconds to apply a fresh layer of eyeliner before tackling her room organization.

40 minutes into unpacking, all Beca had really accomplished was setting up her computers, turntable and keyboard. She'd been hit with sudden inspiration and was sucked into a new mix, which she was in the midst of when a knock came at her door.

"Campus police! Hide your wine coolers!" The door opened and her dad walked in—his beard neat and very short, Kennedy style haircut and wearing his signature sport coat. "Ha Ha! Just your old man, makin' a funny," Dr. Mitchell said with a goofy smile.

Beca smiled back lightly before turning back to her computer.

"Chris Rock, everybody."

He looked around her room a little, noticing the boxes and suitcases in various states of openness and disarray.

"So, when did you get here? _How_ did you get here?"

Beca continued adjusting her desk setup and clicking here and there in her mixing program while she answered.

"Took a cab. Didn't wanna inconvenience you and Sheila. How is the stepmonster?" she bit out callously.

Dr. Mitchell, completely used to his daughter's snarky comments about his wife, chuckled out his response.

"She's fine; thank you for asking. She's actually in Vegas for a conf-"

Beca had turned her attention back to him and interrupted his explanation.

"Oh, no, Dad. I don't actually care. I just wanted to say 'stepmonster.'"

She smiled broadly at him, which caused another chuckle to come out of him. She'd always had that wry sense of humor and he realized just how much he'd missed her since the last time she'd been to Georgia. He smiled softly at her and pulled her into a hug.

"I really missed you, Bec."

She hesitated a moment before bringing her arms around his back and giving him an awkward pat. She didn't hate him; didn't resent him. She knew her parents were better off divorced. But that didn't mean she had to like Sheila or the fact that they had gotten married so shortly after the divorce was finalized.

"Uh, yeah. Missed you too, Dad."

That also didn't mean she was into the whole touchy feely thing either.

Beca pulled back when what she deemed to be a suitable amount of time had passed. Dr. Mitchell gave a tiny nod in understanding and walked around her room and peered out the window.

"So, have you been out on the quad yet? In the spring, the students like to study on the grass."

Beca rolled her eyes slightly and brushed some of her hair behind her ear.

"I don't want to study on the grass, Dad. I want-"

"I know, Bec. I know. You want to move to LA and get a job at a record label and start paying your dues! But we already talked about this. You're going to finish college first. For free, I might add." He walked back over to her and placed his hands lightly on her shoulders. "And _then_ I will help you move to LA."

Beca nodded her acknowledgement. She knew he wouldn't be swayed on this, not right now anyway. She'd work on it later in the semester.

"Besides," Dr. Mitchell continued. "This is Atlanta. There are record labels here that you can apply at for internships when you've settled in to your classes! Two birds, one stone, Bec."

If she wanted to be honest, she hadn't actually thought about that. Atlanta _was_ pretty big for certain genres in the music industry.

"In the meantime, why don't you go check out the activity fair? Maybe you'll find some clubs that interest you," he noted her dubious look. "I know you've never been much of a joiner, Beca. But it'll get you more acclimated to the campus, and you never know who or what you may find. Barden is a pretty diverse place."

Beca forced a small smile and replied, "Ok, Dad. Whatever you say."

Chloe Beale and Aubrey Posen scanned the bustling crowds of the Activity Fair from behind their blue and white sign up table.

Aubrey had spotted a few girls she thought may have had potential to join their group, but Chloe claimed she'd come at them with a little too much intensity and that's why those girls had run off so quickly. In Aubrey's opinion that fear just proved how wrong they were for the Bellas.

As they continued to look around, Aubrey fleetingly took notice of a guy with the beginnings of a Jew fro. She did a double take when she noticed with whom he was walking—appropriate height, good bone structure and body type, well groomed. He definitely had potential of another variety. That he happened to look over towards her and they locked eyes and then he almost ran into a lamp post? That was just an added bonus.

Chloe saw and smirked a little.

"What's so in-" A commotion from behind them cut her off.

_Whip iiiiit!_

A group of guys began singing an a cappella version of that Dazz Band song…which Aubrey would never, _ever_ listen to again.

The girls turned back to face the passing people as Aubrey spoke.

"There's another song I have to take off my playlist. Those aca-jerks cost me so much money every damn year… I just want to-"

Chloe gave Aubrey's arm a supportive squeeze and nodded while the other girl took a calming breath.

"It's a big year. We've already gotten a lot of interest for new members," she said, motioning to their clipboards with quite a few names written down.

"It's a good start. But it's not enough, Chloe. This year is so important for us and we still haven't found-"

"Oh! What about her!"

Chloe pointed with her pen toward a shorter brunette wearing a red tank top and a gray, sleeveless cardigan. Her hair was half pulled back and half down, and she had far more piercings in her ears than Aubrey deemed necessary.

"Oh, I don't know," Aubrey grimaced. "She looks a little too…alternative for us."

Chloe rolled her eyes and pulled out a flyer as Beca was about to pass them by.

"Hi!" Chloe greeted brightly, handing Beca the flyer. "Any interest in pledging our sorority?"

Beca stopped and turned towards the friendly voice, taking the proffered sheet of paper without looking up.

"Beta Epsilon Lambda Lambda Alpha," she read aloud. "That's…weird. Don't sororities usually have only 3 names?"

Aubrey stepped in, "We're not like other sororities." She held out her hand to shake. "Hi, Aubrey Posen."

Beca stared uncomfortably for a moment at the hand before she shook it.

"Uh, hi. I'm Beca. Aren't sororities just the college version of the popular girls in high school? Groups that pretend they're championing some "noble" cause but really they just sit around their house having parties?"

"Excuse me?" Aubrey was borderline seething. Who did this girl think she was? "We raised over $100,000 for Atlanta area women's shelters last year alone, you bitch!"

Beca was equally amused and shocked, but before she could say anything, Chloe stepped back in, smiling kindly.

"What Aubrey means to say is the Bellas aren't your stereotypical sorority on Greek Row. We are a tight knit, devoted group of sisters involved in enriching not only our members' lives, but also the community programs most in need of additional support. I'm Chloe, by the way."

She spoke with such passion and was so honest that Beca couldn't help but be transfixed. Plus, Chloe had these beautiful, piercing ice blue eyes that popped even more with her fiery red hair.

"This year we hope to raise just as much money, if not more, for local animal shelters! Join us and help us turn our dreams into a reality?" Chloe finished with her most winning and hopeful smile.

Beca, having returned to her senses, tried to give her most apologetic look to the ladies across from her.

"Thanks, but…I'm really not the sorority type. But it was really nice to meet you guys."

Beca walked away, but turned back to sneak another glance at Chloe, who offered a sweet smile in return.

"I _told_ you, Chloe," Aubrey sighed agitatedly next to her. "Now, come on. Let's focus on finding legitimate pledges."

They continued to give their pitch to everyone they could. They spoke with practiced ease and remained composed with any rejection they received—there weren't many. All the while, Chloe kept an eye on Beca, who had meandered her way to the Barden University Internship booth.

There was just something about her that Chloe couldn't shake. She was gorgeous, to be sure. But it was more than physical. Chloe just had to figure out how much more and in what way.


	2. The Stars Don't Shine Nearly as Bright

**Chapter 2:**** The Stars Don't Shine Nearly as Bright as Your Eyes**

Beca exited Browner Hall, home to her now confirmed to be exceedingly boring Intro to Philosophy class—she was never letting her dad help her pick classes again—as she exchanged her notebook for her headphones and iPod. Before she could get the cans over her ears, though, her head snapped right, then left.

Ever since the Activity Fair she'd been hearing what she thought was a certain red head's voice, in one capacity or another. Whether it was Chloe calling out someone's name, a random 'Hey you!' or even making out her laugh in the din of the dining hall or the quad, it always seemed to be around her. And she was _positive_ she'd just heard it again. But every time she looked for that head of hair, it was nowhere to be seen.

Beca shook her own head in an attempt to clear it. It's not like this was the first time she'd had a crush on a girl she'd only met once. That was actually quite a common occurrence. It happened every few months, like clockwork almost. She'd see a girl in passing or she'd talk to a customer at the hole in the wall record shop she worked at in Seattle and then she would think she'd hear them everywhere and maybe she'd be inspired to make a mash-up or two, hopeful to maybe get to talk to her again; slyly suggest said girl check out some of her mixes. Then, a week would go by and she'd be back to her normal, sullen self.

It was different this time, though, because not only was she hearing Chloe's laugh, she would swear that she actually _saw_ Chloe a few times. Well, her head anyway.

And those _eyes_, man… They sent chills up, down, all around her body. Those eyes haunted her. They taunted her. They were ruining her precious sleep! (In the best way possible, if she wanted to be honest—at this juncture, she did not.)

She hadn't crushed this hard on a girl since junior year when she and her first girlfriend, Abby—a beautiful blonde, with green eyes and pink lips who "wasn't into labels" (she should have known then, really)—started flirting. What a shitshow that turned out to be.

Sure, it had started out all well and good. What tumultuous relationship doesn't? But six months into it, just about the time Beca had really started to fall and let herself be open to those feelings, and just after she'd told Abby that, she caught her and Derek "She wants the D" Reynolds hooking up in one of the back halls near the art classrooms.

Beca didn't cry, though. Not at school, anyway. Maybe a little bit at home, but definitely _not_ at school.

She felt her phone vibrate in her pocket, breaking her tumble down memory lane. It was the alarm she'd set for 2:15pm—it was her first day interning at the radio station. She was actually surprised she'd gotten word back from them so quickly—like, two hours after she'd written her name down on the clipboard. But then she heard that the radio station was not a popular or "in demand" internship, which suited Beca just fine. The less people she had to compete and ultimately deal with, the better.

With 15 minutes until the start of her shift, she shoved her headphones back into her bag and headed towards the station, all thoughts of Abby and Chloe completely forgotten for the moment.

* * *

Beca checked her phone before she checked for oncoming traffic: 2:27pm. Right on time.

She crossed the street and opened the door to the station, walking towards what she assumed to be the reception desk. Seated behind it, a homely guy with dishwater blond hair and glasses was on the phone, but waved her forward.

"Hey, I'm Beca. I'm-"

"Over there," the guy pointed towards the door marked "STUDIO" and returned to his phone call.

Beca nodded her thanks and opened the studio door and was greeted by one of the most beautiful sights she'd seen on the Barden campus—two floors of shelves, stocked with more records and CDs and even some cassettes than had been in _Play It Again, Sam_—the record store she'd worked in back home—and that she couldn't wait to load into her computer.

"_85.7, WBUJ: Music for the independent mind,_" a voice said over the studio speakers as the previous song faded out and the next, a more mellow indie song, began.

She looked to her right and spotted a guy with a partially shaved head, a couple of slightly visible tattoos on some well defined arms, and a goatee behind the computer in the sound booth. She made her way around the stacks and shelves, but when she got to the window, the guy was gone.

Beca walked closer and peered inside, finding no one, when the door opened suddenly and out stepped mystery guy.

"Hey," he said with a British accent, giving her a slightly questioning look.

"Hi," she replied.

He turned down the volume on the studio speakers, "You been standing there long?"

Beca's eyes widened slightly, she did _not_ need to be viewed as some kind of stalker or something. She shook her head and answered.

"No."

British guy turtle faced as he slipped back into the booth to grab something.

"No, I just got here," Beca continued. "I wasn't…just standing here," she finished weakly.

She moved to follow him, but he turned back around just as quickly, crate of discs in his hands.

"Freshmen aren't allowed in the booth."

Beca stepped backwards and out of his way, and offered a quiet sorry as he stepped back out and closed the booth's door.

"I'm Luke, station manager. You must be…Becky, the intern?"

"It's Beca, actually," she corrected. He might think she was a weirdo, but like hell she would be called the wrong name all year.

"Right, Beca. Sorry, we don't get many girl interns here," Luke offered, as if that were a legitimate reason for mixing up her name.

She waved him off, "It's-"

Out of nowhere, another guy came speed walking down towards the booth.

"Hey, man, what's up? I'm Jesse," he said, holding out his hand to shake.

Luke looked at him for a second, immediately apathetic.

"I'm Luke, you're late," he replied as he walked around Jesse and towards the desk in the middle of the room to set the crate down.

It only took Beca a moment to recognize Jesse, in his blue hoodie and army green t-shirt, as the guy who yell-sang to her just a few days ago on Move In Day. She sincerely hoped he didn't remember her.

"Hey," Jesse said to her enthusiastically. "I know you!"

_Damn it_, she thought to herself.

"No you don't," Beca answered quickly, as she turned back towards Luke.

"Yeah I do!"  
"He doesn't."  
"Totally know her."

She already had the one strike against her in the good impression department; she wasn't looking for another. Jesse, on the other hand, apparently couldn't take a hint.

"Ok, cool." Luke, to his credit, didn't roll his eyes at their stupidity. "Well, you guys can figure it out while you're stacking CDs. When you're done, there's more."

Beca's heart sank quickly. Stacking CDs? That was not what she thought she signed up for.

"Now, you guys are going to be spending _a lot_ of downtime together, so, _please_, just…" he emphatically pleaded with both his words and his eyes as he darted them back and forth between Beca and Jesse, "no sex on the desk. I've been burned before."

Luke took his leave and returned to the booth.

_Gross_.

Beca's inner monologue eloquently expressed both her feelings towards randoms having sex on the desk and the thought of her and Jesse ever becoming romantically entangled. She supposed he was attractive enough, but if she were into guys, she'd probably be more apt to go after Luke.

"I do know you," Jesse said as he shrugged his book bag off his shoulder and rested it on the floor against the leg of the table while Beca tried to look anywhere besides his face. "I sang to you. I remember because you were in a taxi! Wait, is your dad a taxi driver?!"

He said it as if that could be the most fascinating thing ever. Like he was already plotting out his telling of their "meet cute" to anyone who would listen to him.

_Definitely Luke_, she thought.

Shaking her head, she replied, "No."

"Oh," Jesse answered back with a stupid smile playing on his lips.

Beca picked up a jewel case, flipped it over to read the back briefly, and set it back in its pile.

"This sucks," she said, picking up another. "I wanted to play music."

"Not me. I'm here for one reason only: I really _love_ stacking CDs."

Beca continued going through the pile of cases in front of her, but spared him a glance to see if he was serious. The dumb grin he had on his face confirmed his sarcasm, as did the chuckle he puffed out as she returned to her task.

"So what's your deal?" he asked as he moved towards one of the shelves across the way. "Are you one of those girls who's all dark and mysterious; then she takes off her glasses and that amazingly scary ear spike and you realize that, you know, she was beautiful the whole time?"

Beca rolled her eyes so hard they nearly fell out of their sockets before she raised her head to look at him.

"I'm going to stop you right there, dude."

He looked at her, somewhat surprised. Girls usually dug it when he plotted out their movie style timeline.

"First of all, what you just said was horribly offensive. You ask me what my "deal" is but then reduce me down to nothing more than my looks, which is incredibly misogynistic."

He opened his mouth, ready to defend himself, but Beca cut him off before he had a chance.

"Second, my clothing and accessory choices are really none of your concern. And third, I like girls. So if you were even considering hitting on me, which I'm pretty sure is what that awful attempt was, don't waste your breath."

Jesse's mouth opened and closed a few times, the only sounds made were his intakes of breath when he thought he had retorts, but instead came up empty.

Satisfied that she'd made her point, Beca walked to a different shelf and placed the cases in alphabetical order.

A few minutes of silence passed before Jesse spoke again.

"I'm sorry. I guess I've seen She's All That—and probably every other movie in my collection—a few too many times. You were right, that was a dick thing to say."

Beca looked over at him and he seemed to be genuine, contriteness plastered on his puppy dog face.

She sighed, "I'm not going to say it's ok; it's not. Talking to girls like they're nothing more than pretty objects won't win you points with anyone worthwhile. Especially not anyone you're interested in trying to date." He nodded his understanding and continued stacking. Beca figured she'd cut him some slack, though. He was man enough to acknowledge his bullshit. "But I guess I'm feeling generous today because I'm willing to give you a second chance. Plus, I don't want it to be awkward all year."

Jesse smiled widely at her and practically dove into one of the chairs by the desk.

They talked and sorted and stacked for a couple of hours.

Beca told him she was from Seattle; had lived there almost her entire life, with her mom after the divorce. She told him she wanted to produce music when she grew up and that she made her own mixes.

Jesse, meanwhile, told her practically his entire life story. He was from a smaller town, near the Georgia coast. His roommate's name was Benji who was evidently a certified illusionist, a big Star Wars fan and a lover of all things a cappella—especially Barden's award winning group the Treblemakers. Jesse, though, loved movies, and was appalled when Beca said she was not a fan because of their predictability and, many times, cheesy endings.

"The endings are the best part!" He'd exclaimed, but she stood firm in her distaste. He vowed, though, to give her a movie education whether she wanted it or not. She told him she'd consider it, but that getting a root canal in Hell sounded like a better proposition.

He mentioned how he'd seen the most beautiful girl at the Activity Fair and, after assuring Beca it wasn't her, how he'd almost run into a lamp post because he was so spellbound. Beca was horrified to learn that it was Aubrey with whom Jesse was so taken, but she figured to each their own.

"I think I'm gonna ask her out."

Beca didn't have the heart to tell him he probably didn't stand a chance. Aubrey seemed to be too tightly wound to have any type of meaningful relationship. But, then again, maybe Jesse would be into that kind of thing.

At 5, Luke gave them copies of their shift schedules and let them go.

Jesse had commandeered Beca's phone about an hour into their "new bros bonding session"—his words, not hers—and he entered his number into her contacts list, so as they parted ways, he promised to text her later.

She shook her head and she walked towards Baker Hall. Beca supposed if she _had_ to have one friend, Jesse Swanson wasn't such a terrible prospect. He was funny, and to some extent charming. Perhaps a little misguided on how to interact with people without trying to turn everything into a rom-com or something of the sort, but she chalked that up to being out on his own for once.

When she got back to her room, she immediately sat back down at her computer and booted it up. Several mix ideas had popped into her head while she'd been stacking CDs and she wanted to get working on them before she had dinner and at least _considered_ doing her classwork.

She threw a fleeting glimpse to the books and syllabi scattered on her floor.

"Who am I kidding?" she wondered aloud to no one. "I won't be able to concentrate on that boring shit with all these mixes begging to be made."

So, Beca reached into her mini fridge for some leftover pasta salad she'd gotten the day before and hunkered down for a long night of work while visions of red hair and ice blue eyes danced in her head.

* * *

After her first week of classes and shifts at the radio station, Beca found herself getting somewhat settled into a comfortable rhythm. She didn't want to be there, that was true. But it wasn't that she hated Barden, it was the idea of college all together. School and books were more her dad's thing—that's why he became a professor.

Beca was more of an artistic spirit. She thought real world experience, especially for what she wanted to do with her life, would be of far more value than a piece of paper. The problem was she just didn't have the money to live on her own in LA. She'd done the math; even with a few part time jobs, including one at a record label, and her savings, and roommates, she probably wouldn't have been able to afford more than a few months on her own.

So, four years. She could handle that. She had heard once that the older you get, the faster time seemed to pass. Beca had actually prayed for that to be true.

Her routine was pretty simple: get up, go to class, work at the radio station (read: shoot the shit with Jesse while the never ending piles of music needed to be stacked), come home, do work—whether that was school related or music depended solely on how time sensitive her assignments were—and go to sleep. Somewhere in between she would eat and shower, obviously, but it was much the same.

There were days where she would venture out onto the quad. She had actually found a great spot by a tall tree that was flat enough where she could sit or lie comfortably and listen to or work on her music without getting trampled by that weird and unbearable club that ran around in circles. Though there was that one time where they got precariously close to running over a pair (her _favorite_) of her studio headphones. The glare she gave them had been one of her best because they had scattered almost instantly.

She had to grudgingly admit that her dad was right about it—it was a nice spot for a change of scenery when she needed to clear her head.

Beca's head needed clearing a lot, lately. It was a month and a half into the semester and her crush had yet to go away. Her mix folder had grown quite substantially in that time, too. Stupid attractive Chloe and her stupid blue eyes and her stupid hair and her stupid laugh that Beca swore she was _still_ hearing everywhere.

She actually had seen Chloe around campus a couple of the times it happened, so she felt a little better that she wasn't losing her shit entirely.

* * *

That afternoon during their shift, Jesse had noticed she was off and asked her about it. She gave him the bare minimum—she had a crush that wasn't going away and she felt like she was going crazy.

"You could at least tell me the lucky lady's name," he said, rummaging through his backpack.

Beca had considered that, but Jesse had succeeded in getting a date with Aubrey and, surprisingly, they'd actually hit it off. So, with Aubrey being the common link between them, she really didn't need him trying to play matchmaker.

"Not a chance," she said as she plopped down in the chair next to his, writing down the album titles she planned on loading to her external hard drive the next time she remembered to bring it.

"Well I can't be much help if you won't give me more to go on. All I can say is ask her out." Beca stared at him incredulously and he threw his hands up in defense. "Hey, man. If you like her enough to hallucinate her laugh and stuff, what could it hurt? You never know, maybe she's _stalking_ you and you're not losing your shit."

He let out a belly laugh at his own remark and finally procured the Capri Sun pouches he brought with him, as well as a DVD and some pretzels. He placed the box of pretzels between them and handed Beca the Capri Sun before loading the disc into his laptop.

As she poked the straw into her juice pouch, Beca pondered the boy next to her for a moment. She wondered if, in an alternate universe, they would have ever had a chance to be something more than just friends. Then she almost threw up because, _god no_. They were way too different and needed different things from a romantic partner.

She glanced at the title screen coming up on his laptop before taking a sip of Capri Sun.

"I don't know how you didn't have a girlfriend before. I mean, you've got juice pouches and _Rocky_," she said, half joking with a smirk on her lips.

He side eyed her before he shook his head and told her to shut up with a chuckle.

* * *

They only paid partial attention to the movie while Jesse blabbed endlessly about how that night was going to be his and Aubrey's fourth date and how, if it went well, he would ask her to be his girlfriend.

"Four dates and you're ready to commit to the label, huh?" Beca said, adding another album and artist to her list.

"You don't get it, Beca," he replied, kicking his feet up onto the desk. "This is _Aubrey Posen_. If I don't lock her down, some other guy could swoop in!"

Beca sucked the last of her Capri Sun from its pouch and frowned. There was never enough. _What a metaphor for life_, her brain said. She paused immediately. _What the fuck kind of existential shit was that?!_ She was definitely skipping tomorrow's Intro to Philosophy class.

She looked at Jesse again and wondered if he'd maybe brought extras, but didn't want to be a mooch either. She hated people like that. Just sucked and sucked until you literally had nothing left to give. They were exhausting…

"Those Bella girls are weird. Aubrey was like…super intense when I talked to them at the Activity Fair."

Jesse frowned, "You just have to get to know her, Beca. Aubrey's actually really cool and really sweet!" At Beca's look of doubt, he crossed his heart and held up three fingers, "Scout's honor!"

She rolled her eyes and shook her head in reply. "Whatever you say, dude. But I think your bias is showing just a little bit. I mean, you are receiving some type of benefits package from the girl."

"You make it sound so _clinical_," he said as slight repulsion crossed his face. "I'm a complete gentleman and always let her decide how far-"

Beca faked a gag and got back to stacking.

"I cannot stomach any more of this. I don't need the intimate details of your sex life."

"Ask your crush out and then you can gross me out with your intimates."

"You're an idiot," she retorted as she breezed past him, smacking him lightly in the head with a vinyl copy of Thriller.

"Ah, but I'm _your_ idiot!" he replied jovially with his most winning smile.

* * *

Dr. Mitchell rounded the corner and paused in front of room 224. He knocked on the white door quietly, but received no answer. He tried once more before turning the knob, a tad dismayed to find that it was unlocked.

"Beca?" he called into the room softly.

It was 1:30 in the afternoon and she was sound asleep, her headphones resting near her playing a song he felt a hint of recognition towards, but couldn't quite place.

He walked over and sat down on the edge of her bed.

"Beca," he repeated as he poked her thigh to rouse her. "Wake up!"

She took a sharp inhale, startled from her dream, and rolled over to grudgingly acknowledge her father.

"Funny, this doesn't look like your Intro to Philosophy class."

Beca sat up halfway, leaning on her elbows.

"I'm posing an important philosophical question," she responded. "If I don't actually go to that class, will it still suck?"

Dr. Mitchell let out a small laugh, despite himself. He was mad she was already skipping lectures, but he also knew she was an adult now and had to make those choices for herself. He had kind of guessed that Philosophy was a bit of a stretch to be a favorite of Beca's, even as he filled out her class roster.

"Ok, I get it: Philosophy isn't your thing. You can pick your elective next semester, but you still need to go to class, Bec. If you don't graduate, I won't be helping your move to LA; just keep that in mind if you need motivation."

"Yeah, yeah, Dad. I got it," she sighed as she got up and went to her closet for a towel and shower caddy.

He stood up and walked over to her window, but noticed the pile of mail on her desk; there were several rush invitations from some of the sorority houses, including one from Beta Epsilon Lambda Lambda Alpha.

Dr. Mitchell picked up the envelope and turned it towards her. "Thinking of joining a sorority?"

"What?!" Beca practically screeched and crossed the room.

She looked at the envelope he was holding and then shuffled through the rest of her mail pile. There were several envelopes like the Bella one, all addressed to her. She hadn't even bothered to look through it when she grabbed it that morning after her English lecture.

"Dad, no. They obviously send these out to every freshman girl on campus. The only ones I talked to were the Bellas and I didn't even write my name on their clipboard."

He nodded a little, somewhat sadly.

"You know, it wouldn't be such a bad idea to join a group."

"But-"

"I know, you got that internship at the radio station, and that's great! I'm really proud of you for taking that initiative. But, Beca, it wouldn't hurt to have some girlfriends and make some memories."

Beca shuddered a bit. She absolutely hated when adults called girls who were friends '_girlfriends_.' In her case especially, it could cause a lot of confusion.

"The Bellas are such great community outreach ambassadors and have a wonderful reputation in the area and around the country. Having that group of alumni to draw upon after graduation would be beneficial!" Dr. Mitchell noticed Beca's boredom with him and decided to take his leave. He could only offer her guidance and gentle suggestions; she was the one that had to decide on her own.

He squeezed her shoulder for a second and headed towards the door.

"This is college. Join in! Just think about it," he said with a smile and closed the door behind him.

* * *

Beca stripped down and threw on her robe and shower shoes and padded down the hall to the showers.

She pushed the door open and a little bit of steam hit her face causing her to briefly wonder how this room wasn't covered in mold with how poorly ventilated it was.

"You shout it out, but I can't hear a word you say," Beca sang quietly as she swayed down the aisle of shower stalls to the music in her head. "You're talkin' loud, not sayin' much." She picked one near the very end, situated her towel over the bar and hooked her shower caddy on the hanger. "You criticize but all your bullets ricochet," she sang a little louder, really getting into the David Guetta song. She pushed aside the shower curtain, took off her robe, haphazardly hanging it on a hook and turned the water onto hot as she stepped inside. "You shoot me down but I get up…"

"Bulletproof, nothin' to lose/Fire away, fire away," Beca sang at a medium volume. The showers may have been empty, but she didn't need her voice to carry so much that passers by decided to create an audience and wait for her to walk out. "Ricochet, you take your aim," she continued, bopping along to the beats in her head.

"So your thing is singing, huh?" a voice behind Beca asked.

Startled, Beca jumped as she spun around and screamed, "DUDE!" as she threw the shower curtain closed.

Chloe had been toweling off in her own stall—she was visiting a friend in the dorms and had an unfortunate run in with a couple of frosh guys in the hall who were having a ketchup and mustard fight—when she heard the singing. It had been so beautiful she'd forgone the towel entirely in order to find its source.

Undeterred, she threw the curtain back open and stepped into the stall with Beca.

"You have a great voice! You should start an a cappella group," she complimented with a smile as she shut off the water.

Beca, still somewhat in shock at the scare, and, frankly, kind of pissed, gave Chloe her best 'what the fuck?' look and disbelievingly replied, "_Seriously_?"

"Oh, totes! Unless that's not your thing either."

"No," Beca shook her head. Either Chloe was playing dumb or was remarkably obtuse. "I meant 'seriously' as in are you really bursting into my shower right now? I'm nude." Beca tried to cover up as best she could, but all she had at her disposal was her loofa and her arms. Meanwhile Chloe looked happy as a clam, unbothered by their current state of undress.

"Yes, because I wanted you to know I appreciate your talent! I could tell you that all the time if you'd join the Bellas." Before Beca could remind her that she was not the sorority type, Chloe continued. "You were singing 'Titanium,' right?"

"You know David Guetta?" Beca inquired, somewhat impressed. She assumed girls like Chloe would only listen to cheesy pop songs and maybe some rap music at parties. She felt a little of her anger melt away and slide down the shower drain.

It was Chloe's turn to give Beca a look of disbelief. "Have I been living under a rock? Yeah! That song is my jam," she said as she stepped just a tiny bit closer and lowered her voice. "My _lady jam_."

Beca's eyes widened as she dropped the loofa and caught the not so subtle innuendo instead. She grabbed for the shower curtain to cover up.

"That's nice," she said quickly, trying to look anywhere but at Chloe. It was one thing to think about your crush naked while in the comfort of your own bedroom. But it was a completely different thing when they were standing in front of you where anyone could walk in.

"It is. The song really builds." Chloe smiled and winked, still unbothered by the whole situation.

"Jesus Christ…" Beca whispered.

"Will you sing it for me?"

"Dude, _no!_ Get out!"

All she'd wanted was a quiet mid afternoon shower and maybe a snack before she tackled the English essay she had due in a few days. She did not want Chloe to ambush her naked, requesting her to sing _lady jams_.

Chloe rolled her eyes and scoffed, "Not for _that_ reason. As if I'd be that crude." She shifted her weight and crossed her arms nonchalantly. "I'm not leaving here 'til you sing, so…"

_This girl is serious_, Beca thought to herself as she took in Chloe's obstinate stance.

Chloe faked a yawn and gave her nails a quick check before she leveled Beca with direct eye contact. She had noticed the other girl hadn't quite looked expressly at her; maybe it would help.

Beca nearly lost her footing when Chloe's eyes caught hers. They were just _so. Blue._ She almost wanted to cry at how gorgeous they and their owner were.

She could just tell she wasn't getting out of this shower without singing for Chloe, so she took in a breath and reluctantly sang.

"I'm bulletproof, nothin' to lose…"

_ Fire away, fire away/Ricochet, you take your aim  
_Chloe had joined in, unable to help herself—she really loved the song aside from it being her lady jam—to create one of the best harmonies Beca had ever heard in person.  
_Fire away, fire away/Shoot me down, but I won't fall  
_Beca couldn't tear her eyes from Chloe's, so she allowed herself, just this once, to get lost in them. She felt her arms go weak, hands slack and the shower curtain dropped to the side. She was bare, physically and metaphorically; open for God, Chloe, and anyone else who might decide to walk in to see. When Chloe smiled at her like that, what could she do?  
_I am Titanium/Shoot me down, but I won't fall  
I am Titanium_

Chloe felt something click in the back of her mind, but maintained composure. She gave Beca a satisfied smile, which caused Beca to beam back.

And Beca, despite her best efforts, couldn't help but take in everything else about Chloe—she was only human for God's sake—but was a gentlewoman and averted her eyes quickly, hoping the other girl hadn't noticed.

"Oh, yeah," Chloe said as she glanced over her own body and nodded. "I'm pretty confident about—" she swept her hands through the air, up and down her figure, "all this."

"You should be," Beca replied before she could stop herself.

Chloe gave her an appreciative smile as they fell into silence, just looking at one another.

After a short while Beca snapped out of her haze and whispered, "I was…gonna shower."

"Oh, right!" Chloe stepped back and walked back to her own stall, grabbing her things and headed towards the door. She needed to get back to the Bella house as soon as possible to talk to Aubrey.

Before Beca could turn the water back on, though, she heard Chloe say:

"See you at the rush party!"


	3. Pictures in Frames Kisses on Cheeks

**Chapter 3****: Pictures in Frames; Kisses on Cheeks**

"AUBREY?!" Chloe yelled as she barreled into the Bella sorority house.

She had practically full out sprinted from Baker Hall back to Greek Row—a nearly two and a half mile distance—and was grateful for her best friend's insistence that the entire sorority maintain a high level of cardio in their workout routines.

She slammed the front door behind her as she grabbed the first girl to walk near her.

"Mary Elise!" Chloe exclaimed, frightening the sophomore in her grasp into silence. "Is Aubrey here? Please tell me she's here. Where is she?!"

During her rapid fire questioning, she had physically shaken Mary Elise—a small framed girl, almost frail looking, with medium length brown hair and glasses—and the poor thing couldn't get a word out.

"She's upstairs," a voice from the living room stated. Chloe looked to her left and saw Kori, a beautiful girl with dark skin and eyes that carried herself with an air of confidence even Chloe couldn't match, who was also a sophomore, walk into the foyer. "She's doing her yoga routine and studying."

"Thanks, Kori!" Chloe smiled, releasing Mary Elise and took off up the stairs.

Kori looked at her Bella sister and sighed, "C'mon, girl. Let's get you some water."

Mary Elise nodded stiffly and allowed her self to be guided to the kitchen. They really needed to work on her confidence.

* * *

"Aubrey?" Chloe called out as she knocked on her best friend's door and walked into her room.

Sure enough, Aubrey was in the middle of a downward facing dog with her Ethics textbook open below.

"What is it, Chloe?" Aubrey asked as she flipped to the next page, breathing deeply.

"Aubrey, we need to talk," Chloe said brusquely.

Aubrey turned to look at her and noted the seriousness in her features. She shut her textbook and rose from her pose and grabbed her towel and bottle of water.

"Ok, what's up?" she asked, taking a sip from her bottle and dabbing her face with the towel.

Chloe closed the door quietly behind her and strode over to sit on the edge of Aubrey's bed.

"So, you remember Beca, right? From the Activity fair?"

Aubrey tilted her head trying to jog her memory. They had talked to so many girls that day, it was hard to remember names and the faces to whom they belonged. But then-

"Wait. Do you mean that incredibly rude girl with way too many piercings in her ears and far too much dark eye makeup that basically said we were vapid, spoiled rich girls?"

"If that's the way you want to describe her, then yes."

Aubrey rolled her eyes and scoffed, "Yes, it is. So, what about her? Why all the dramatics?"

Chloe took a deep breath and exhaled in an attempt to steady her nerves. She'd been on edge since leaving Baker Hall; her heart had still not slowed down to a normal rhythm.

"She's… She's the one, Aubrey."

Aubrey paused, trying to decipher Chloe's meaning. "The one, Chloe?" she challenged. "For serious?"

"Yeah," Chloe assured her. "I felt it when-"

"Is this like when you thought Daniel and Jackie and Drew were all 'the one'?" Aubrey interrupted, using air quotes around the last two words. "Sweetie, don't do this to yourself again, ok?" She had heard this before from Chloe, and every time it ended up terribly for her friend. Chloe was such a sensitive soul, so she took break ups especially hard.

Chloe shook her head, frustrated.

"Aubrey, no. Listen to me. Beca is _the one_." She tried to drive her point home with very direct eye contact and emphasis on her words.

It helped, because Aubrey finally got it: Beca Mitchell was the key to everything.

* * *

Beta Epsilon Lambda Lambda Alpha was a legitimate sorority by trade. They had multiple chapters at universities across the country, countless sisters in alumni and worked very hard to achieve such a sterling reputation amongst their respective communities. The thing that separated them, aside from the extra long name, was the fact that they were also a coven of witches entrusted to keep the world safe from "egotistical garbage dirtballs"—Aubrey's words—or, in this year's case, the Barden Treblemakers.

Barden was a particularly active hot spot for paranormal activity and had always seemed to attract a less than savory crowd. Some problems were easier to deal with than others.

In the 80s, for example, the Kappa Kappa Theta boys tried to summon a particularly nasty brand of basilisk, but really just created an oversized anaconda that ended up swallowing some of the frat brothers whole. The Bellas merely reversed the spell and returned the garden snake to its harmless original form.

This year, though, the alumnae caught word that the Trebles were going all in and were going to try and summon Rahknar, a demon whose greatest power was garnering influence by enthralling its target and swiftly killing them, if that was its conjurer's wish. It could also be used to ascend to ruler of the entire world if brought into the right body in the proper way. Allowing that kind of power to be in the hands of the Treblemakers' leader, Bumper, was not an option. Thus, the Barden Bellas had to get ready for the biggest fight of their lives by finding and preparing their vessel for the coven's goddess, Hecate, to inhabit.

How the fates screwed up so badly that their vessel was _Beca Mitchell_ of all people, Aubrey would never understand.

"Oh, no…" Aubrey groaned out as a realization smacked her in the face like the football that hit Marcia Brady in the nose.

"What?" Chloe looked back up at Aubrey, concerned. "What is it?"

Aubrey closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose, sitting down next to Chloe on the bed as she explained. "Jesse's Beca from the radio station and the Beca we need for the ritual are the same person. I'm going to have to get him involved."

"Why do our lives have to be so complicated?" Chloe whined as she laid her back on the bed. "I finally like someone that is exciting and cute and can hold my interest for longer than five minutes and just when I get to talk to her alone, I find out I have to bleed her?! How am I supposed to, potentially, have a meaningful relationship with her with things like they are? I did not just spend the last month following her on her periphery for it to end before it can even begin!"

Aubrey was about to let Chloe know every last thing she disliked about Beca, and also scold her for stalking someone, but bit her tongue instead; Chloe was hurting enough. Instead she gave her friend the bare bones truth of the situation. "I'm sorry, Chloe. But you know the ritual comes first."

It was Chloe's turn to sigh. "I know. Doesn't make things any easier, though."

"That's why you chose to let me be President of the Bellas," Aubrey replied, giving what she hoped was a comforting pat to Chloe's bent knee. "Because I can make the tough decisions."

Chloe and Aubrey had grown up together just outside of Atlanta. It was their destiny to go to Barden, that knowledge had been drilled into them as kids. The Beale's and the Posen's had met when they attended Barden in the late 70s—Chloe's and Aubrey's mothers had been in the same pledge class—and had taken the bonds of sisterhood so seriously that they raised their daughters with full disclosure.

Some fluke of birthright had tabbed Chloe as the eventual leader of the Barden Bellas. Chloe, however, was uninterested in the title (and the extreme pressure that came with it) so she had forfeited it to Aubrey. Sure, she was still technically more powerful than Aubrey when it came to spells and things, but Aubrey was a more apt leader.

The girls stayed in Aubrey's room a bit longer, allowing silence to envelop them and their thoughts.

* * *

The following night after their dinner date, Jesse and Aubrey had found themselves in Aubrey's room in the midst of a quite wonderful make out session. Jesse was a great kisser, though he swore Aubrey was better, and had just moved to her neck. He did this thing… She wasn't sure how to describe it, but he'd definitely found her weak spot was too focused on it, too distracted by the 90s slow jam they had playing, to hear her when the words tumbled from her mouth.

"Cui loquor, bene audire: Hear my words, follow mine direction; focus for me, my heart's affection," she whispered in his ear.

She felt him stop in an instant and watched as he leaned up, eyes glazed but his attention solely on her.

"Jesse, can you hear me?" Aubrey asked while she cupped his face with one hand, sliding her thumb over his cheek.

Jesse nodded and Aubrey swallowed hard. She hated having to do this, she really, _really_ did.

"Jesse, I need you to do me a favor. I need you to convince your friend Beca that joining the Bellas is something she absolutely needs to do. That joining us would be good for her. Can you do that for me?"

Jesse nodded again.

"What is it that I'm asking you to do, Jesse?" She needed verbal confirmation that he understood. She couldn't bring him out of it until he assured her he understood.

"You need Beca to join the Bellas. You want me to help you convince her," he replied, his normally lively voice devoid of any emotion.

Aubrey nodded, "Good." She took a deep breath before she continued. "My heart's affection, focus again: remember only of mine intention, but none of this direction. Forgive me of my indiscretion; here end the lesson. Porta clauderetur; redire ad conscientiam."

She grasped the back of his neck and guided his mouth back to hers as she uttered the last words of the spell and he kissed her deeply.

Jesse pulled back, eyes back to their normal sparkling way, and beamed at her.

"You are so beautiful," he said quietly, as if it would ruin the mood if he spoke any louder.

Aubrey gave him a weak smile and thank you in return before she pulled him down into a hug.

She wanted to throw up the rest of the night.

When Jesse left to go back to his dorm, she finally did.

Drained, both emotionally and physically, Aubrey turned in for a fitful night of sleep.

* * *

Beca had noticed something a little strange—not unwelcome, just strange—the last few days. After their encounter in the shower, she started seeing Chloe at least once a day, and not of her own volition. She wasn't going out of her way to track Chloe down (even though she was tempted), they just happened to cross paths more frequently.

On Monday, Beca was in the library trying to get her Philosophy paper under control. She'd commandeered a six seat table to herself, books and print outs and notes spread all around and her laptop humming away. She glared at anyone who came even remotely near the five empty chairs. Well, she had until Chloe popped up.

Beca hadn't even heard her approach. It wasn't until Chloe set her bag on the table that Beca looked up, glare instantly melting when she saw who it was.

Chloe claimed she also had a paper due and needed a change of scenery from the sorority house since it was in the beginning stages of being prepped for Rush Week.

"It's two weeks away and there's still so much to do," Chloe sighed heavily, pulling out the middle chair opposite Beca and taking a seat. "Aubrey's a total perfectionist and everything has to be just so with her. It can be exhausting, sometimes."

Beca chuckled at that. "That doesn't surprise me one bit," she replied, smiling a little.

Chloe returned the smile and pulled out her own laptop and began to work.

Their silence was amiable, not at all awkward. It was nice. They were able to bounce ideas off of one another and give feedback where necessary.

Co-working, Chloe had called it.

Though, if Beca wanted to be honest, a lot of her time was spent throwing glances at the girl across from her; taking in her mannerisms, noting little tics Chloe had, darting her eyes away when Chloe would feel herself being watched.

She only brought up Beca joining the Bellas three, maybe four times the whole four hours they worked across from one another.

"You're persistent, I'll give you that," Beca commented as they packed up their things.

"You'd be better off just saying yes now, Beca Mitchell."

They walked towards the exit and Chloe held open the door for her.

"Oh yeah?" Beca snickered. "And why is that?"

"Because I want you to join!" Chloe leaned in to whisper in Beca's ear. "And I always get what I want."

She walked off, but not before giving Beca a wink and an alluring smile.

* * *

Mid-morning Wednesday, Beca was waiting in line at the Barden Brew for her coffee order. There was a Starbucks closer to her English building, but the Brew's coffee just tasted better—and it didn't hurt that it was less expensive.

She had just received her mocha when she turned and saw Chloe, beautiful as ever with the sunlight streaming through the window, hitting her at all the right angles, sipping some tea and reading a book.

She should have just walked out, Beca knew that. Yet, something—her libido, let's be real—compelled her to walk over to that girl at the window table.

"Chloe, are you stalking me now? Do I need to call 911?"

Chloe smiled into her book, not bothering to look up as she replied, "I should be asking you that same question, shouldn't I?" She marked her page and closed the book, finally looking at the girl standing next to her. "After all, I've been here for a couple of hours."

"You caught me," Beca said with her hands raised in faux surrender. "But don't have me locked up, ok. I want to know how I did on the English exam I just had."

Chloe appraised her for a moment with a small smile still on her lips.

"Would you like to join me?" she said, motioning towards the empty chair across from her.

Beca had a while before her next class, so she acquiesced.

"So," she began with a sip of her drink. "You've been here for a couple of hours?"

"Oh, yeah. My morning class got canceled so I decided to stop in for some tea and wound up getting really into this book," Chloe replied, holding up the book in question.

"Oh, _god_, Chloe. Really?" Beca's face contorted as if she were in true physical pain. She couldn't believe The Fault in Our Stars had reeled her crush in.

"What?" Chloe squeaked, ready to defend herself. "It's interesting!"

"John Green is a pretentious douche bag. Be better than that, Chloe. I'm begging you!"

They went back and forth for about five more minutes before Chloe shifted the topic to Beca. She asked Beca her favorite everythings. She asked where she grew up and if she was at all homesick. She asked if Beca was seeing anyone—super subtle—and how it was possible she was single. She asked Beca to join the Bellas—even _more_ subtle—and what her hobbies were. When Beca said she DJed back in Seattle, Chloe mentioned that Beca should totally DJ the mixers the Bellas threw—queen of subtlety, really.

"So that's me… Let's talk about you now."

Beca turned the conversation to Chloe because, frankly, she felt a little more than uncomfortable having revealed so much about herself. Yet at the same time she felt totally at ease because it was _Chloe _to whom things were said. She just had that way about her; made a person feel comfortable enough that they could share and nothing would ever leave their bubble.

They spent hours talking about anything and nothing. They only stopped because Beca had a shift at the radio station—her class completely forgotten—and Chloe had a three o'clock class.

When they parted ways, Beca made Chloe promise to burn that damn book as soon as she finished, which made Chloe laugh heartily.

That sound stayed with Beca the rest of the day and into the night as she started a new mash-up of Bruno Mars' "Just the Way You Are" and Nelly's "Just a Dream".

* * *

Late Friday night Beca turned the key in the deadbolt and locked the radio station door.

Her shift had ended hours ago, but she stayed late to load some more albums onto her external hard drive. There was all that free music at her fingertips, it would have been wrong to not take advantage of it.

Jesse was kind enough to stay and help her find some of the albums she wanted, but he had to bail after only an hour to get ready for his date with Aubrey.

"You know, if you just joined the Bellas then you'd get to know her and we could all hang out together!" he suggested enthusiastically.

Beca just shook her head and clicked on the track titles she wanted to burn.

"Have fun on your date, friend. Don't forget you promised to help me study tomorrow night."

He swung his backpack over his right shoulder as he walked backwards towards the door.

"You provide the books, I'll provide the pizza. Don't stay too late, alright?"

"Ok, Dad!" she tossed back at him, flippantly waving her hand in his direction.

As she walked back to Baker Hall, she checked her phone for the time: 12:30am. It was later than she thought.

Her stomach growled loudly, a reminder that the package of peanut butter crackers she had grabbed from the vending machine earlier were not going to tide her over until breakfast. Thankfully she was almost back to her dorm where a cup of Easy Mac would be waiting.

"Beca?" a voice called out in front of her.

She squinted into the shadows near her tree in the quad and saw a lithe figure walking towards her.

"Chloe? What are you doing out here this late?" Beca asked suspiciously.

"Late night study session for Econ," Chloe said nonchalantly, her thumb indicating she'd come from Baker Hall. "Mary Elise, one of my sorority sisters, was helping me since Aubrey was unavoidably detained."

Beca nodded, accepting her answer. "Oh, yeah. Jesse wouldn't shut up about their date earlier. I swear, they have date night 7 nights a week."

"Aww, come on. It's sweet," Chloe nudged Beca's shoulder a little. "He's been good for her. In case you didn't know, Aubrey's a little…" she paused and tried to think of the right word. She settled on, "high strung."

Beca gasped sardonically. "Aubrey? High strung? How dare you! I won't have you slandering her good name, Chloe."

"Stop it!" Chloe laughed breathily, her eyes twinkled in the moonlight. "What are _you_ doing out so late, by the way? Or should I be asking _whom_?"

"I was at the radio station, perv," she replied as a blush crept up her neck. Chloe asking about her sex life just put more inappropriate thoughts of their potential, but totally unlikely, coupling. "I was loading music onto my external and lost track of time."

"Mmhmm," Chloe hummed in the back of her throat with mocking skepticism on her face. "A likely story."

_Thank God it's dark out_, Beca thought.

Her next comment was cut off by her own yawn. Maybe she should have listened to Jesse about staying so late…

Chloe noticed and quietly bid her goodnight. "It's late, I should get going. Sleep well, Beca."

"Thanks," she replied. "You too."

Before Chloe could get too far, Beca jogged over and called out to her.

"Hey!" she stopped just before she ran into Chloe, who had turned when she heard Beca call out. "Are you going to be ok walking alone?"

Chloe couldn't help but smile at her.

"You're sweet for being concerned. But don't worry," she squeezed Beca's forearm lightly. "I'm not afraid of things that go bump in the night."

Chloe leaned down and gave her a soft peck on her right cheek, then headed off toward the sorority house. She looked back at Beca a few times before slipping completely out of sight.

Beca stood frozen for a few moments, cheek tingling where Chloe's lips had touched. She brought her right hand up and lightly grazed the spot with the pads of her fingers.

She spun back to Baker Hall and made her way to her room.

She'd just crawled under the covers when she heard her phone vibrate on her desk. She slid her thumb across the lock screen and read the message.

_p.s. you should totes join the Bellas ;-)_

She rolled her eyes good naturedly and breathed out a laugh. Chloe must have gotten her number from Jesse.

_Get home safe, weirdo stalker of mine :-p_

Beca set her phone back on her desk and closed her eyes; fast asleep almost instantly.

* * *

The following Saturday, Jesse and Beca were having "bro time"—again, his words. For them, "bro time" basically meant they binged on pizza while Jesse was sprawled across her bed watching a movie—this week's feature was The Breakfast Club—and Beca worked on some songs and would sporadically glance at the screen. She had to admit, though, the movie's soundtrack was good.

_I'll have to check the station and see if they have a copy_, she mentally noted.

"So," Jesse started as John Bender triumphantly raised his fist and the credits rolled.

Beca already had an inkling of what he was going to say so she saved her progress and gave him her full, annoyed attention; crossed arms, disaffected stare and all.

"I've noticed you've been spending a lot of time with a certain someone."

Ok, so not exactly what she thought he was going to say. She was about to reply when-

"You could have told me your mystery crush was Chloe. I mean, I do have the inside track since her best friend is my girlfriend. I totally could have hooked you up!" he said as he sat up to face her.

"Jesse-"

"No, no," he interrupted again, holding his hands up. "I get it; you want to woo her on your own."

"There is no 'wooing' happening," she huffed and threw a pen at his head. "We're just friends."

"But you want to be more," he said sing-songingly. He jumped up and started to dance near her while goading her with movie references she was vaguely familiar with. "You want to huuuuug her. You want to kiiiiiss her. You want to loooove her!"

When he was close enough she smacked him in the stomach.

"Oof," he exhaled out in discomfort.

"Keep that shit up and I'll aim lower next time," she smirked at him.

He sat back down on the bed, packing his things. It was getting late and he needed to get back to his room for his nightly phone call with Aubrey.

"There is a way to get closer to her-"

This time it was Beca who interrupted.

"Christ, not again!" She queued up her sleep playlist before she looked at him again. "For the last two weeks you've been not so subtly hinting for me to join. Why is it so important to you?"

"I just want you to like Aubrey," Jesse said, expression downcast. "I want all of us to be able to hang out together. It would be so much fun, I know it. I want my bro and my-" He paused before he said something mildly offensive. "-go to girl to be cool with one another."

Beca sighed, "Ok, I get that. But why do I have to join the dumb sorority?"

"Think of it this way: if you join the Bellas then you get to spend more time with Chloe. You also get to know Aubrey better, which is great, and opens up opportunities for the four of us to hang out together," he ticked off his points on his fingers, just to emphasize them a little more. "Plus, no one said you have to stay in it forever; you _can_ de-pledge if you end up not liking it."

Jesse made some good points… She hated when he did that because then she couldn't come up with a decent rebuttal; she was pretty sure "I just don't want to" wouldn't work.

Beca peeked at the white and blue envelope that still sat on the other side of her desk and bit her lip for a moment. She had too many thoughts floating around in her head to make a firm decision.

"I'll think about it," she told him.

"That's all I ask," Jesse responded and walked out the door. Not a second later, he popped his head back in to add, "But if you could hurry up; Rush Week starts Monday."

"Dude, get out!" Beca shouted, half laughing and threw her empty water bottle at his stupid grinning face.

Chloe checked her phone again, for what felt like the 50th time. She leaned against a tree in the quad that faced Beca's dorm room window.

The light had gone out in Beca's room about 20 minutes ago and she had seen Jesse exit the building about a minute after that. 10 minutes ago Aubrey texted her, confirming she and Jesse were in the middle of their before bed chat. She figured Beca had to be asleep by now, so she pushed off the tree and closed her eyes while she took a deep breath in.

Quiet exhale.

When she opened her eyes, she stood next to Beca's bed. Chloe was right; she was zonked out. She could hear Beca's sleep playlist playing through the headphones that rested on the edge of her desk.

Over the last two weeks she'd gotten pretty good at figuring the amount of time necessary to allow Beca to fall asleep completely so she could enter the room undetected. It felt like such an invasion of privacy, to apparate into Beca's room without permission, but there was no other option. She had to prepare the vessel for its impending occupation.

_She's still a person, Chloe. One you care about; don't forget that_, she thought.

Chloe lifted her hands to hover over Beca's body and began to whisper the spell; a dark, pained look splashed across her normally bright and delicate features.

"Aperire mente; anima aperiat. Hecate, we call you…"


	4. Am I Caught In a Hit and Run

**Chapter 4****: Am I Caught In a Hit and Run**

_Author's Note: This chapter includes a character being **drugged** and **intentionally** **cut**. Read with discretion.  
_

* * *

Monday morning found Beca sitting at her desk as she alternated between working on music and glaring at that stupid white and blue envelope with her invitation to join Beta Epsilon Lambda Lambda Alpha. After about 20 minutes of that, she agitatedly huffed and grabbed it out from under the pile of papers stacked on top.

Snow white paper with baby blue lettering for the Bella's logo, she noticed that her name and address were carefully handwritten; overall it was pristine. Compared to the other invites she'd received—basic cardstock, printed labels, etc.—the Bella's invite looked like something that would be sent out for the Grammys or the Oscars. It made her feel kind of special.

She turned the envelope in her hands some more; studying, considering, debating it.

She thought about whether she would even have time to commit to a big group like that. She thought about whether spending that extra time with Chloe was worth having to be a joiner. Beca had spent so much time being anti-club, anti-group, anti-most people in general that it would usually take something major to convince her.

And then she realized that "something major" had already come along and convinced her. That "something major" had her so whipped already it was ridiculous. That "something major" had a name, and that name was Chloe Beale.

"Stupid beautiful girl," Beca grumbled and glared at the envelope again before she opened it.

Inside she found a smaller baby blue envelope and card with white and gold trim that read:

_The sisters of Beta Epsilon Lambda Lambda Alpha are happy to extend to you, __**Beca Mitchell**__, this invitation to join our sacred sisterhood. Please sign and return this card to us by October 8, 2012 if you accept your bid into our prestigious and celebrated sorority._

She grabbed the nearest pen and felt the need to take a deep breath. For some reason she felt like she was about to sign her life away. She shook it off and placed her signature next to the tiny x at the bottom of the card.

Placing the card carefully in its blue envelope, she checked the clock and saw she had just enough time to drop it in the intercampus mail before her math class.

* * *

"Benji is so bummed, man," Jesse said during their shift at the station Tuesday afternoon.

He and Beca were stacking on shelves that were back to back, so they were able to see one another as they moved down the row.

"Did they even give him a legitimate reason?" Beca questioned. "From what you've told me, he's got a good enough voice."

"He totally does! He practiced in our room for hours."

"Well, I've heard the Trebles are a bunch of assholes. It's probably for the best that they didn't let Benji in."

"Yeah, true," Jesse acknowledged. "I still feel bad, though. He wanted to perform with them really badly. That was one of the biggest reasons he even came to Barden."

Beca gave him a skeptical look.

"You're not serious."

He nodded, "Totally serious. He said Bumper—that's their captain's name—actually said to him that the smell of Benji's weird was affecting his vocal cords. And that Benji didn't have the necessary killer instinct."

"Killer instinct? For a cappella?" Beca questioned. She couldn't believe that was even a _thing_ now. "See? Assholes."

"Yup," Jesse agreed as he moved to the next shelf. "I'm going to take him out for some pizza. Nothing soothes the burn of a cappella rejection like a nice-a pizza pie!"

He added his horrible fake Italian accent on the end which made Beca chuckle.

"Aww, look at you, being a good friend," she teased kindly.

Jesse beamed, "I'm a catch, I know."

"And humble, to boot!" she said with faux surprise. "It's a wonder I didn't overcome my severe case of the gay to fall for you."

He smirked, loving that he and Beca had a repartee steeped in heavy sarcasm. It was rare to find someone with which you could unabashedly joke around in that way.

"So, you wanna join us? Hanging out with a gorgeous girl, even one he has no chance with, could only do him good."

"Can't," Beca replied, going back to the desk for more CDs. "I have a Philosophy reading that I've been putting off. Plus, I have some Bellas pledge assignment I have to do."

Jesse practically squealed his excitement.

"Why are you so excited? It's literally just a big ass packet asking about my hobbies, class load and prior arrests."

"Because that means we're one step closer to being the Fearsome Foursome!" he explained as he joined her at the desk, plopping down in the chair.

Beca looked horrified. She was sincerely rethinking this whole thing.

"Oh relax, weirdo," Jesse quipped. "I know how averse you are to cliquey names. And, you know, fun in general."

Beca flicked his forehead as she walked past him, "You're such an ass. Maybe _you_ should have joined the Treblemakers!"

It was Jesse's turn to look horrified.

"Beca, don't even joke about that. Not only would Benji have been completely betrayed, which would have made rooming with him incredibly awkward, but then I would've never had a chance with my boo thang."

Beca gaped at him over her left shoulder, "Did you just say 'thang?'"

"This is no time for Mean Girls quotes, Beca," he said severely. "Aubrey absolutely detests the Trebles."

"I wasn't-" Beca started to correct him about referencing a movie she had only seen once, but thought better of it. "Nevermind. And wow, something Aubrey and I agree on? Alert the media!"

He clasped his hands together, staring dreamily into the distance. "It's truly a miracle. I feel like I should start singing Deep Blue Something's 'Breakfast at Tiffany's' in this moment."

Beca practically fell over herself as she ran over to the desk to clasp her hand over his mouth.

"I beg of you, don't."

Jesse shrugged his shoulders, acquiescing for the moment. He checked his watch, noting it was time to call it quits.

"Enjoy your homework assignments while Benji and I are devouring deliciously unhealthy pizza," he said as they exited the station building.

"Oh, I'm already buzzing with anticipation," Beca retorted. "Enjoy your outstandingly heterosexual man date."

She gave him a small wave and they parted ways.

* * *

Friday night had arrived; Initiation Night.

Beca—wearing a pair of black jeans and a navy sleeveless tee under a fitted black leather jacket—stood uncomfortably outside the door to the Beta Epsilon Lambda Lambda Alpha house, debating internally whether to actually knock or to turn tail and run all the way back to her dorm.

Before she even had the chance to turn around, the door opened and Chloe smiled at her. She had a gold and blue scarf tied around her neck.

"Were you planning on taking your initiation outside or…?"

Beca instantly blushed. She wasn't about to tell Chloe that thoughts of bailing were looking favorable.

"Uh, no. I was- I just-" she stammered.

Chloe looked at her sympathetically.

"Nervous?"

Beca nodded.

_Sure. That'll work._

Chloe stepped out and wrapped her arm around Beca's shoulder and guided her into the house, past a three sided statue with what appeared to be the same woman carved into it on each side. Chloe locked the door behind them.

"Don't worry," she said. "I won't let anything happen to you. This year's pledges are a great group of girls!"

As they entered the living room, Aubrey glanced up. With a tight but still somewhat friendly smile, she greeted them.

"Beca, you made it! Great, now that everyone's here we can begin."

After brief introductions, they headed down to the basement, which seemed more pit-like and cavernous than Beca had anticipated. There were what seemed like hundreds of candles, varying in size, providing the only light to the room.

"I can't believe they let my sexy fat ass in," a larger blonde girl—Fat Amy, she recalled—whispered to her in a thick Australian accent.

"I don't know what I'm doing here," she replied. She couldn't explain the wholly uneasy feeling she had being in that basement, but she knew she didn't like it.

"Livin' the dream!" Fat Amy said excitedly, granting her a large smile.

Chloe walked to the long table on the side of the room opposite the stairs where several scarves lay. She picked them up and began handing them out to the new pledges while Aubrey and the previous year's sisters—Kori, Mary Elise and Denise—pulled out two goblet looking cups from under the table.

When everyone had their scarves, Chloe returned to the front of the table and exchanged a nod with Aubrey; Kori, Mary Elise and Denise stood off to the left.

"We shall begin by drinking the blood of the sisters that came before you," Aubrey said as she picked up the half full goblet and handed it to Chloe.

Beca's eyes widened, terrified she'd accidentally signed up for a Heaven's Gate-like doomsday cult.

_Oh, God. I'm going to die here and this scarf is going to be my pair of Nikes_, her brain groaned.

Chloe stopped in front of her first and handed her the glass.

"Dude, no!" she refused quietly.

Chloe looked her in the eye and smiled.

"Don't worry, it's Boone's Farm," she whispered with a wink.

Beca relaxed a little at Chloe's reassurance and took the glass. She sniffed the contents first—it definitely smelled like Strawberry Hill wine. She took a bracing breath and tipped the liquid into her mouth and swallowed. Relieved would have been a severe understatement to how she felt when her taste buds registered that distinct Boone's Farm-y bite rather than the copper taste of blood.

Chloe moved down the line quickly, and then returned the glass to the table.

"Now," she said, looking at the seven young women before her. "If you will place your scarves in your right hand."

She mimed the motion for them while Beca casually glanced over at the others to make sure her scarf was, indeed, in her right hand.

_Nailed it_, she thought proudly.

"Now, repeat after me: I—state your name." Aubrey waited for the pledges to follow her instructions. "Promise to fulfill the duties and responsibilities of a Bella woman."

Beca noticed Chloe was staring pretty intently at her, a strange look on her face. She also noticed that she felt weird—her stomach churned, she felt hot and her head felt fuzzy.

"And I solemnly promise to never ally myself with anyone who fights against feminism and equality for all; but most especially will I only work to destroy the Treblemakers or may my lady parts be ripped out by wolves," Aubrey continued.

_Wow, Jesse wasn't kidding_. _She _really_ hates them_\- was Beca's last semi lucid thought.

As the girls finished repeating her words, Aubrey beamed with pride.

"You are all Bella women now."

The room erupted in ecstatic screams, but Beca's head swam. The room spun rapidly.

"Iterum incipiat," Chloe recited from behind.

Beca's eyes fluttered for a second and ultimately rolled back and shut as she fainted into Chloe's waiting arms.

* * *

"So how does this work exactly?" Fat Amy asked as she, Cynthia Rose, Jessica and Ashley lifted Beca's limp body onto the table while Lily placed Chloe's jacket under Beca's head. "We bleed the little tater tot, we Hulk out and witch slap those Trebles so hard that their man boobs concave?"

Stacie presented Aubrey with a medium sized, rectangular wooden box.

"Thank you, Stacie," Aubrey said, and rested it next to Beca's leg. She opened the top and removed a long, thin blade with a dark leather handle from its blue velvet lined resting place, carefully handing it to Chloe. "Not quite, Fat Amy."

Aubrey took a sliding step toward Beca's shoulders and lifted her so she was in a sitting position. "Stacie and Lily, will you please take her jacket off?"

Stacie and Lily quickly removed the tight jacket and Aubrey laid Beca back down. She looked out at the girls in front of her and proceeded to explain.

"The sisterhood of Beta Epsilon Lambda Lambda Alpha is sacred and we have been entrusted with abilities uncommon to the laypeople. With these abilities come great responsibilities. By taking the oath, you promised to commit your lives to protecting those who need it. Chloe?" Aubrey turned her head to her best friend, who looked on the verge of throwing up.

Chloe handed her the dagger and moved over to Beca's arm and carefully took it in her hands, turning it over.

"How the ritual works is we bleed the vessel—in this case, Beca—a little at a time, while reciting the incantation that will allow the spirit of our goddess, Hecate, to inhabit Beca's body, and then we drink. Her blood fortifies and strengthens our powers, but we only do a little at a time because any more would overwhelm both the vessel and us. The further along we go, the stronger we get, and the more Hecate takes control of the vessel, until finally we go and stop the Trebles," Aubrey continued to explain while placing a shallow cut down Beca's wrist.

Denise, who had stepped forward to grab the empty chalice, handed it to Chloe, who tilted Beca's hand just so, allowing the blood to drip into the glass. When it was about a third of the way full, Chloe turned Beca's wrist back and bent her elbow so Beca's forearm was vertical. Aubrey dabbed the cut with antiseptic and placed a small pad of gauze over it.

Chloe laid Beca's arm palm up on the table and she felt overcome with guilt. She took what she hoped to be a calming breath, cleared her throat and raised her hands to hover over Beca's body.

"Aperire mente; anima aperiat," she began. Aubrey signaled for the rest of the group to encircle the table and repeat after Chloe.

_Hecate, we call you. Your humble servants bring you the vessel to allow your entrance to this mortal coil; the plans of our enemies we seek to spoil. Use this vessel, let your will be done; inhabit the body, let two become one._

The glass of blood was passed to each of the girls until they had all had a small amount. Chloe allowed her hands to hover over Beca once more, and she closed the spell.

"Allow no transgression to touch this vessel; make our enemies quake and tremble. Allow no memory of this to see the light; give the vessel the feeling of right. Porta clauderetur; mente lenire."

A beat of silence passed over the room before Aubrey clapped her hands once.

"Ok, ladies. We need to get Beca upstairs quickly before she comes to. Amy and Cynthia Rose, can you please carry her up? Denise and Ashley will help. Make sure to put her coat back on and we'll do a minor healing spell on her wrist, too."

"You got it, Chief," Fat Amy responded, giving Aubrey the classic finger gun and acknowledging wink combo.

"The rest of us will blow out these candles before we've got the fire department breaking down our door," Aubrey instructed.

She noticed Chloe's robotic like movements as she cleaned the dagger and returned it to its case.

"Hey," she spoke gently. "You ok?"

"Fine," Chloe deadpanned, not even bothering to glance in her direction, and closed the wooden box's top.

Aubrey grimaced at her and tried to offer a comforting hand on her shoulder, "Chloe-"

"It's fine, Aubrey," Chloe snapped. She shrugged one shoulder and glimpsed at her friend. "It has to be done, right?"

Chloe blew out a few candles and then headed up the stairs, flipping the light switch on her way.

"Yeah," Aubrey replied sadly, though Chloe was out of earshot. "It has to be done…"

_If the Trebles weren't such douchebees and had just stuck to a cappella instead of trying to ruin everyone's lives by summoning Rahknar, this could've all been avoided_, Aubrey thought bitterly and finished cleaning up.

* * *

"Beca?" Chloe's voice sounded far away. "Beca, you with me here?"

Beca shook her head and blinked a few times.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" she said, perplexed.

"Am I that boring that I caused you to go all space cadet?" Chloe laughed.

"No, never!" Beca hurriedly denied. "I think I just…" She looked down at her cup. "Too much punch, I guess."

Chloe nodded, "I completely understand. I have been on the receiving end of this punch's ability to sneak up on a person."

"I'm gonna go to the-" Beca started to say as she stood up, but immediately wobbled. The color drained from her skin.

Chloe was up off the couch like a shot and braced her so she didn't fall. She knew what this was, and it wasn't entirely the result of too much punch. Sure, Beca had had a couple of cups of the stuff in between when they initially woke her and now, but the after effects of the ritual were really harsh at first. They would lessen with time; at least she hoped.

"Woops!" Beca giggled, not hating the feeling of Chloe being this close.

"C'mon, drunky. Let's get you home."

Chloe guided them through the rest of the girls towards the front door and grabbed her coat. She caught Aubrey's eye from across the room and exchanged a grave look before leaving into the cool night air.

* * *

"Beca, where are your keys?"

"Mmmm," Beca thought really hard, tapping her finger on her lips and tilting her head to the side. "In one'uv my pockets?"

Chloe rolled her eyes. Clearly drunk Beca was also extremely unhelpful Beca. She patted the other girl's coat pockets and found nothing but her phone, so she stuffed her hand into Beca's jean pocket, which elicited some squirming.

"Whoa there, buy a girl dinner first!" Beca joked through an inebriated snicker.

Having successfully retrieved the keys, Chloe unlocked room 224's door and helped Beca inside.

_This is the first time I've been in here with an actual pseudo invite_, she thought to herself. _And the lights on_.

"Can I get you anyth'n?" Beca asked as she toddled in what Chloe assumed her drunken mind thought to be a smooth way to the mini fridge. "I've got water and soda and…tha's about it," she grinned.

_She's a messy drunk, _Chloe mused with a tiny, but fond smile. _But she's a cute messy drunk._

Beca almost took another tumble, so Chloe stepped forward to stabilize her and sat her on the bed.

"I think _you're_ the one who's gonna be needing some water, Beca," Chloe replied as she began divesting Beca of her jacket and shoes.

She looked around the room for some pjs, but as soon as she felt her shoes removed from her feet, Beca slid immediately under the covers and closed her eyes, only mumbling an acknowledgement of Chloe's suggestion.

Chloe grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and the aspirin off of Beca's shelf and set them on the desk, just above where her head rested. She wasn't sure what the remedy might be for the supernatural hangover Beca would likely experience in the morning, so she went with the old standbys.

She was just walking toward the door—confident Beca had fallen asleep—when she felt a tug on her arm. She looked down and saw Beca's eyes were still closed, but it was definitely her hand gripping her arm. Chloe kneeled next to the bed and pushed a little hair that had fallen in front of Beca's face behind the girl's ear.

"Stay," Beca whispered.

"Beca…" Chloe said warily.

It was one thing to stay the night when they were both sober and knew what they were saying, but Beca was-

"It's late and there are probably creepers running around campus," she said, one eye partially opened.

Chloe laughed lightly, if only Beca knew how right she was about _that_.

"Alright. But I'm sleeping in your bed. I don't care what people say: the floor is not good for anyone's back."

Chloe took off her shoes, jacket and long sleeved shirt so she was in just her jeans and tank top. She turned out the light and then carefully climbed over Beca and rested on her back.

After about ten minutes, Chloe was sure Beca was fast asleep—her breaths had evened out and she'd made no other comments. Chloe glanced over at the back of Beca's head and a fresh wave of guilt washed over her.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered, pained.

"Why're you sorry, weirdo?" Beca tiredly mumbled, rolling over so she faced Chloe, but didn't open her eyes.

_God damn it…_

"Don't worry about it. Just get some sleep," she replied and closed her own eyes as well.

* * *

Days and weeks passed by, slowly and quickly, and Beca and Chloe grew closer.

They spent hours in the library together, studying—midterms had creeped up on them—or just hanging out, enjoying each other's company.

They laid outside under Beca's tree and listened to music. Sometimes Chloe could coax a conversation out of her, other times they basked in amiable and comfortable silences.

Some nights Chloe would surprise Beca—and Jesse, on a couple of occasions, when they were having bro time—with pizza or some other kind of take out. Chloe had devised a plan to try every restaurant around the Barden campus so Beca would know where to definitely go and avoid when she needed a break from the dining hall's standard and usually over processed grub.

Chloe would sporadically pop in to the station and bring Beca and Jesse coffee.

"_Dude, why haven't you made your move yet?" Jesse all but interrogated once Chloe had left for class._

_Beca rolled her eyes, "Because. It's just…"_

_She trailed off because, honestly? She didn't have a reason. Not a good one, anyway. Was she afraid of rejection? Naturally. That fear was common with any crush situation. But she was also pretty sure—like, 92%—that Chloe was into her._

_Jesse threw her a knowing look. "Exactly. If you don't do it soon, someone else will," he said as he took a sip of his latte and walked off, leaving Beca to stew._

All the while, the ritual continued.

Once a week, the sisters of Beta Epsilon Lambda Lambda Alpha would gather for a progress meeting. They began the same: Aubrey asking for updates from everyone on their efforts to raise money for local animal shelters and offering suggestions on how those efforts could be better executed. Then, at some random point, she would simply say _somnus_ and Beca would trance and be left susceptible to suggestion.

"Having Beca walk herself up and down the stairs for the ritual makes things much easier," Aubrey tried to rationalize.

Chloe absolutely hated it, but also didn't have much of a choice in the matter.

So, the group would follow Beca down to the basement where she would lay herself upon the table and the bleeding and recitation of the spell would commence.

Bleed. Heal. Repeat.

* * *

The weekend after midterms, Chloe and Beca were enjoying a well-deserved night in, full of mindless internet quizzes and YouTube videos and milkshakes.

Chloe had been asking Beca for weeks to share some of her music with her, but Beca would shy away from it. That night must've been special, though, because her request was met with a small smile and a nod.

Beca didn't bother asking Chloe to move from her seat at the computer desk. Instead she just worked around her and pulled up her extensive mix folder and opened a mash-up she was still working on of "Titanium" and La Roux's "Bulletproof" and put her headphones on.

"So, uh, I just find songs that have the same chord progressions and create a track that blends them together," she said relatively loudly, while animatedly gesturing with her hands. "So, like, this is the new bass line," she continued and pointed to one part of the screen. "And this is matching up down beats…"

Beca glanced over to make sure Chloe was following and was greeted with a smile and barely contained laughter. She gently removed her headphones and realized the volume of her voice.

"Oh, I'm talking really loud aren't I?"

"Maybe a little," Chloe granted. "But you're excited, so I'll forgive you this time."

"Gee, thanks," Beca replied sardonically. She glanced at the bigger monitor and quietly pointed out, "Uh… That's me, singing."

Chloe motioned for the headphones, which Beca gladly passed along, and put them on, immediately immersed in Beca's world.

She closed her eyes and let herself get lost for a moment, feeling the beats and rhythms and harmonies spread through her body. It was incredible. She felt the smile on her face grow to the point where she thought her cheeks might have split open, and when Chloe opened her eyes, Beca's smile mirrored her own.

"This is so good!" Chloe said, about as loud as Beca had when she wore the headphones. "Let's see what else you've got in here."

She spent the next 20 minutes scrolling through Beca's seemingly endless mix folder. Chloe noticed there were quite a few mash-ups with "Titanium," as well as a lot of Bruno Mars's songs. Of the ones she clicked on, her favorite had to be the one titled "Just the Dream You Are."

"These are amazing, Beca," Chloe told her genuinely as she removed the headphones and placed them on the desk.

Beca glanced away while a blush creeping up her neck threatened to pop out of her black and gold sweater. "They're alright, I guess," she responded modestly. "I kind of just threw them together."

Chloe shook her head. "No, I mean it! You are _so_ talented. You're amazing," she said, placing her hand on Beca's and squeezing a little.

Beca looked at their joined hands and then at Chloe's eyes.

_Those stupid, perfect blue eyes_, she thought.

She heard Jesse's voice float around in her head, too: _Why haven't you made your move yet?_

A beat filled with perfect silence, aside from the tiny crackles of what Beca determined to either be the electricity between them or her brain's warning that she was about to do something stupid—she decided to go with the former—passed before Beca leaned forward.

It was soft and hard, gentle and rough all at once. The moment had been building for quite some time. Jesse was right—if Beca didn't make a move, then Chloe would definitely have other people who wouldn't chicken out.

She cupped Chloe's jaw as they kissed and only pulled away when she felt Chloe pull back first.

"Wow…" Chloe whispered; her eyes still closed.

Beca panicked a little.

_Oh, my god. What if she didn't like it? What if she's not into me? What if I'm a terrible kisser?! Get it together, Mitchell._

"Was that ok? I mean-" she said, unsure.

Chloe finally opened her eyes and smiled softly at her. "Yeah," she replied. "More than."

* * *

A few days later, Chloe and Aubrey were in the midst of a yoga routine—Aubrey swore it would relax her—discussing Beca, their kiss and how Chloe was dealing with everything.

"I can't let this go any further, right?" Chloe asked while stretching her arms high above her head. "That would just be wrong of me. I feel like I'm taking advantage of her or something!"

Though she'd kept her emotions pretty well guarded that night, when Beca kissed her Chloe had felt so guilty she almost threw up in the other girl's mouth. In fact, on her walk back to the sorority house, she actually had vomited. And cried. It was a horrific scene.

Aubrey inhaled and exhaled deeply, trying to formulate the nicest response possible.

"While she's not my top choice of romantic partners for you, for an innumerable amount of reasons, I also know that when you fall for someone…you fall hard." She turned to look Chloe in the eye, "And I've never seen you fall this hard, Chloe. Like my dad always says, 'If you're not here to win, get the hell out of Kuwait.'"

Chloe sighed heavily and sat down on the floor, her knees pulled up to her chest.

"I have to tell her what's happening though. It's the right thing to do. God, Aubrey," she whimpered. "She's been telling me how awful she's been feeling lately, and you can see it! She's dropped weight, and she was already thin! She's getting some severe dark circles under her eyes…"

Aubrey sat down next to her friend.

"You know she'll just freak out and run if you tell her, though. The Trebles know who she is and, if she runs, we won't be able to protect her."

Chloe's face took on an even more pained look than before, which Aubrey didn't think was possible.

One of the downsides of the ritual they were performing—and if you asked Chloe, there were many—was that the vessel was spiritually vulnerable for 24 hours after each bleeding. So, the Trebles, if they really wanted to, could easily steal Beca's soul in that time period. Thankfully they were usually too busy coming up with their competition arrangements. They were aca-idiots for not capitalizing, but Aubrey wasn't about to complain.

"This sucks," Chloe pouted.

Aubrey gave Chloe's arm a supportive squeeze and her most sympathetic smile.

"I know, sweetie. I'm lying to Jesse, too, and I hate it."

Chloe nodded and added, "At least you're not bleeding him and letting his soul and body be temporarily taken over by an ancient super power. You have a good chance of being forgiven if he ever finds out."

"Thanks for being an optimist for my sake," Aubrey laughed humorlessly.

"That's what friends are for," Chloe smiled sadly.

* * *

Jesse noticed Beca hadn't quite been herself the last few weeks. If he wanted to be honest—he didn't—it had started when she joined the Bellas nearly two months ago. He'd been able to look past the mood swings—Beca could be grumpy, or borderline ornery, more often than she'd be willing to admit—and the initial appearance of the dark circles—it was college, no one slept well or near enough. But the noticeable weight loss had put it over the top.

Her features were harsh and sharp, with her sunken in cheeks and cheekbones threatening to tear through her skin. The dark eye makeup she typically wore now gave her raccoon eyes when mixed with the dark circles underneath. They were a few days away from winter break and he hoped that would help.

"Beca?" he said cautiously. He flinched slightly when she turned and looked at him. "You don't look so good… Everything ok?"

She nodded and went back to stacking.

"Yeah, it's just a cold or something."

"Beca…" he stressed his doubt. "You've been off for weeks, months now."

He heard the snap and crunch of a jewel case breaking.

"Don't worry about it, boy scout," she nearly growled.

Jesse stood from where he was seated at the desk and walked over to his friend.

"What is up with you?" he asked, setting his hand on her shoulder.

As soon as she'd felt the contact, she slapped his hand away. She gave him the deadliest glare he'd ever received in his life before grabbing her backpack and heading for the door.

"Beca, wait!" he called after her. "I'm just concerned! If you don't want to talk about it, fine."

Beca paused and took a deep breath. She honestly didn't know why she was so testy and on edge lately, but she didn't like it. The other day she snapped on Chloe, too. _Chloe_, of all people. Her fucking _girlfriend_. She had felt so guilty and apologized profusely. But…she was just .tired.

"I'm sorry, ok?" she said remorsefully and turned around. "It's this cold, it's really messing with me."

He gave her an understanding nod.

"You wanna hang out tonight? I'll stop by the café and get you some soup and we can just watch a movie or something?"

He had plans with Aubrey that night, but he'd gladly cancel to make sure his best bro was ok.

Beca rubbed her face in an attempt to wake up a little bit.

"I wish, man, but I have my last Bellas meeting before break in a little bit and then I still have to pack."

_Ugh, so much to do,_ she thought.

She checked her phone and saw she had 45 minutes to change and grab her things for the meeting and then get to the sorority house.

"Look, I gotta go. I have to change and grab a couple things before the meeting, but we'll hang out before I leave, ok? I promise," Beca told him with a wave and headed out of the building towards Baker Hall.

Jesse didn't know why, but he had a feeling that whatever was going on with Beca had something to do with the Bellas. He just hoped Aubrey and Chloe weren't part of it. He loved Aubrey, and Chloe really seemed like a cool chick, who also happened to make Beca really happy. But anyone who hurt his friend that badly couldn't and wouldn't get away with it.

So, he decided to follow Beca to the Beta Epsilon house and find out what was going on once and for all.

* * *

Jesse kept a good amount of distance between Beca and himself as he followed her to the sorority house.

After he saw the front door shut, he made his way into the bushes in front of the living room window as stealthily as possible and peered in. He was thankful it got dark so early, because otherwise his cover would have been blown immediately.

Everything seemed fine. Aubrey and Chloe were next to Aubrey's large dry erase board, markers in hand, surrounded by various mock ups of flyers and pictures of adoptable animals, while the rest of the girls sat on the couch or floor. He couldn't hear anything, but it was pretty obvious they were plotting out the adoption drive they had scheduled for the first week of February.

He'd been there, crouched in the bushes, for about 30 minutes and was ready to give up. Beca was alright—she looked like hell, but she'd looked like hell for a while and still hadn't seen a doctor.

_Maybe she does just have a nasty cold bug_, he reasoned.

Jesse was just about to go when the mood shifted in the house. Beca's face went from exhausted, but probably invested to completely void of emotion. It was subtle, but he'd noticed.

He watched as she stood from the couch and walked into the foyer, then out of his sightline. Wherever she went, the rest of the girls followed.

He waited about five minutes—just long enough to be sure everyone had left the room before he sprang from the bushes and hurried to the door.

Jesse pressed his ear against the hardwood, but once again couldn't hear anything, so gently, he tried to doorknob. To his surprise, it gave easily and he opened the door and quietly stepped inside. He took one small step to allow himself enough room to shut the door as much as he dared without making much noise, and then turned his attention back to the foyer.

He deduced immediately that the girls were no longer on the main level and mentally ran through a list of possible places they could have gone, when he noticed a door down the hall slightly ajar and a tiny amount of light coming from behind it. He tiptoed his way to it and found it to be the way to the basement.

He wasn't prepared for what he found as he crept down the stairs.

Beca lay motionless on a table surrounded by the rest of the Bellas reciting God only knew what, while Aubrey held a cup under what looked to be a pretty bad cut on Beca's wrist, which Chloe was preparing to bandage.

"What the hell are you doing?!" he shouted as he ran down the remaining steps and pushed his way through the circle of girls.

"Jesse, I-" Aubrey froze immediately. She didn't know how to explain what he'd just seen.

"Beca? Beca?!" he called out, trying to wake his friend by lightly and repeatedly tapping her face. "What the hell did you do to her?!" he yelled at everyone and no one in particular. "Bec, c'mon. We gotta go."

Chloe looked to be on the verge of tears, Aubrey was still in shock and the rest of the Bellas weren't sure whether to try and stop him or not.

"Evigilo," Chloe whispered brokenly, to bring Beca out of her trance.

Jesse swung Beca's uninjured arm over his shoulder and picked her up like she was an infant. With how small she felt and looked in his arms, she may as well have been. He got her up the stairs quickly and all but ran out of the house.

He was still confused as hell about what he'd just seen, but he wasn't going to stop until he and Beca were back in Baker Hall with the door locked behind them.

* * *

It took Beca about an hour to fully come out of her stupor.

It took her another 20 to 30 minutes to fully comprehend what Jesse had told her.

She cradled her now bandaged wrist and stared blankly at her wall, conflicted.

She felt hurt, betrayed, used, violated… At the same time, she also just wanted Chloe there to hold her and tell her it was just a bad dream.

In the end, she and Jesse agreed to not speak to Chloe, Aubrey or any of the other Bellas. They figured it would be easy with Beca heading back to Seattle for winter break and Jesse headed home as well.

Too bad they underestimated just how deeply they were involved in the supernatural shit storm that loomed ominously above Barden.


	5. May the Odds Be Ever In Your Favor

**Chapter 5****: May the Odds Be Ever In Your Favor**

Winter break had been both a blessing and a curse for Beca.

Her mother was horrified at her "emaciated" condition when she picked Beca up from the airport.

"Mom, _please_. It's just a cold I've been battling," Beca said as they drove back to the house.

"You're supposed to _gain_ weight your freshman year, Beca. Not lose it," her mother huffed in response. "You look like those poor African children in the Aunt Jackie commercials."

Beca rolled her eyes heavily in response and sighed an "Ok, mom," back. She did find it hilarious that her mom could never remember the actress's actual name, and just resorted to calling her Aunt Jackie from her days on _Roseanne_.

It wasn't awful, though. Any time Beca was ill, her mom pampered the hell out of her. And at that moment, Beca wasn't going to dissuade her from doing the same.

Within just a few days she started to feel much better, more normal. The dark circles under her eyes faded a little bit—it didn't hurt that she'd been sleeping nearly double digit hours every day at home compared to the few hours each night at school. The home cooking she was fed was like heaven after months of cafeteria fare. She finally understood what people meant when they said a little TLC could do a world of good.

After a week, she felt well enough to venture out of the house and headed over to Play It Again, Sam to check out the selection. She picked up a few used CDs to burn to her external, including Taylor Swift's latest album—as _if_ she was paying full price for something that might ruin her [nonexistent] street cred.

She'd already planned her excuse if anyone asked her about it: _She writes great breakup songs, which is exactly what I need for my next playlist._

She checked her phone on the walk back home and saw another three missed calls from Chloe. That had been 14 total. There was also one text.

_Beca, I get that you're scared and probably really mad, but PLEASE talk to me. I have to explain._

She wanted so badly to write back, to return all those calls. She knew she couldn't, though. She couldn't…_wouldn't_ let herself get sucked back into whatever weird, potentially satanic shit Chloe and the Bellas were doing. Even if her heart longed for Chloe's voice; her gentle touch; those eyes…

Beca shook her head clear and walked home at a faster pace than before. She had music to make.

* * *

That had been one of the high points of break, actually. Her creativity was spurred by the…incident.

There was an attempt made at mashing up "So This is Love" from Cinderella with "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together," but she found that Taylor's song paired more satisfyingly, both figuratively and musically, with Avril Lavigne's "Complicated."

Beca exited her English building and pulled out her cell phone.

Spring semester had been in session for a week and she and Jesse had stuck true to their pact to not talk to Chloe or Aubrey. It helped that they stuck together and walked with one another just about everywhere when possible, but as she checked her text messages, she found one from him apologizing that he wouldn't be able to meet her—he'd gotten held up with some group project for his Psych class.

"Fuckin' group projects. Such bullshit," she grumbled to herself as she wrote him back.

If she'd been more on her game, she might have heard her approach.

"Hey…"

Unfortunately for Beca, who'd almost dropped her phone at the sound of her voice, Chloe could move like a ninja when she wanted.

Chloe was thrilled to see Beca, and she looked a lot better than she did before winter break. Her skin, though still pale, had a glow about it. Her eyes had their brightness back, and she looked like she was back to a healthy weight.

"Um…Hey," Beca replied, utterly uncomfortable. "I gotta go."

She turned to leave, but Chloe called out to her before she could get anywhere.

"Beca, wait!" Chloe was relieved when Beca did, but didn't know how long it would last, so she continued the speech she'd been working on for a month. "I know you're upset, and mad, and probably a little scared," Beca spun back around and gave her the most incredulous glower. "Ok, a lot scared. I just-" she paused and bit her lip. "I'm _so_ sorry. I wanted to tell you, I just didn't know how. How do you tell the girl you're falling for that you're a member of a coven and she's the key to stopping a probable apocalypse, but in order to do that, you have to use her as a vessel for an ancient and very powerful being?" Chloe stopped once she saw Beca's eyes filled with tears and her jaw clenched so tight she was scared Beca was going to fracture her molars. "Oh, God… Please-"

"I can't-" Beca cut her off hoarsely and cleared her throat. "I can't do this right now. I have to go."

Beca turned quickly and hurried off before Chloe had the chance to stop her again. She couldn't deal with the emotional baggage of their supremely fucked up relationship at that moment, especially in public. She needed to get as far away from Chloe as possible.

Chloe, dejected, leaned against the English building. That hadn't gone how she'd wanted at all. She watched Beca as she approached the curb to cross the street. Out of nowhere, four guys in crimson hoodies jumped her and put a covering over her head.

_Trebles_, she thought angrily.

Chloe sprung up from where she leaned and began to run toward them, but a van pulled up and Beca was quickly tossed inside. She could do nothing but watch, horrified, as the van's tires squealed loudly in their hasty exit.

She grabbed her phone and quickly sent out a 911 message to all of the Bellas and sprinted for the sorority house.

* * *

"Is it bothering anyone else that they left the outside completely unguarded?" Jesse asked as he and the Bellas stood just outside of the Treblemakers' house on the outskirts of Greek Row. "My extensive movie knowledge is telling me this is a trap."

Jesse had walked out of his Psych building to multiple missed calls from both Aubrey and Chloe, which caused both alarm and discomfort—Aubrey had tried numerous times after the incident to talk to him, but he stayed true to his pact with Beca about not talking to any of the Bellas. After a week of not returning her texts or calls, Aubrey seemed to have taken the hint and stopped. So after a month of no communication, that both she and Chloe were bombarding him sent him into a slight panic. He called Aubrey back and rushed over to the Beta Epsilon house immediately after the words "Beca" and "trouble" were uttered.

He and a few of the girls looked around the seemingly deserted street warily. Aubrey, on the other hand, scanned the area quickly, but acutely.

"No, it's fine. This is typical Bumper," she huffed, annoyed. "He never plans ahead—just assumes his plan will work. Amateur..." she whispered the last word, completely disgusted.

She could not understand how a guy like that would even be remotely capable of summoning any being as powerful as Rahknar. Then again, she also couldn't understand how _Beca_ of all people was the one who would be capable of holding the spirit of Hecate, yet that had happened too.

"Ok…" Jesse said, mostly to himself. "So, what's the plan here?

The group looked around at one another for a moment before turning their heads toward an already poised Aubrey.

"Fast and hard strikes in squads. Jessica, Mary Elise, Lily: you are Squad A. Cynthia Rose, Stacie and Kori: you're Squad B. Fat Amy, Denise and Ashley; Squad C. Jesse, Chloe and I will bring up the rear," she pointed to each person as she said their names and waited for the squads to form. "I want precision and power, ladies. This is what we've been working towards!" She turned and faced the Treble house—another thing she didn't understand was why the Trebles had their own house when they were just an a cappella group, but that was a gripe for another day. "I will stop at nothing to take those ding-a-lings down." She whipped back around and put her hand out, palm down. "Now, hands in!"

The Bellas and Jesse all stuck their hands in over Aubrey's and chanted, "One. Two." When "three" should have been called, the girls screamed out in harmony, while Jesse's eyes widened in shock.

_That was unexpected_, he thought, and then ran after the group.

Mary Elise took a deep breath before she tried the front door's knob. Everyone was a bit surprised when the door swung open—except Aubrey, who was made even more furious that the inept asshats of the Trebles were _this_ sloppy. They had the power to set magical booby traps, to arm their house to the gills… She wasn't complaining. It just peeved her. A lot.

They moved swiftly and silently through the garishly furnished rooms on the main floor until Cynthia Rose signaled that she'd found something.

Aubrey put her ear to the door that was slightly ajar and listened for a moment. She could hear some sort of chanting emanating from behind it and pulled it open more to reveal a staircase to what she presumed to be the basement. She signaled for squad formation and the girls, plus Jesse—who had found a bat elsewhere in the house—headed down, sure that they were ready for whatever awaited.

However, what they found caused Chloe, Aubrey and Jesse to pause at the base of the steps as the others fanned out to take offensive positions.

The Trebles—about 15 by Aubrey's quick count—kneeled in front of an altar upon which Beca was suspended, chained to a crucifix type fixture. Bumper stood next to her, transfixed by the battle that waged inside Beca's body. It was clear that Rahknar and Hecate were fighting for control—Beca's cries of pain were gut wrenching—and Aubrey realized that she had severely underestimated them. This had to have been their plan the whole time: let the Bellas do all the dirty work and then the Trebles would swoop in and finish the possession with _their_ spirit instead.

_How did I not think of that as a possibility?!_ Aubrey mentally berated herself.

The Trebles somehow hadn't heard or noticed them enter the room. Aubrey signaled go and the girls attacked.

The kneeling Trebles were caught off guard at first, but quickly rebounded. Bursts of energy bounced back and forth, displacing objects and people. Bodies twisted and writhed at inhuman angles from spells being cast. Dark smoke attacked one of the boys until he fell, lifeless, to the floor.

Aubrey and Jesse stood back, fighting off any Trebles that managed to break through the squad lines. Jesse swung his bat with ease; getting a rush of energy any time he made contact with a knee or stomach. His goal was to injure, not kill; he was positive that, unless his or Aubrey's life was in jeopardy, he wouldn't be able to handle the guilt that would follow taking someone else's life. Aubrey had no such qualms, evidenced as she took out one Treble by snapping his neck with nothing but her mind.

She noticed that Chloe hadn't moved at all—she was rendered immobile at the sight of Beca, strapped to the crucifix. Until…

Aubrey caught the movement out of the corner of her eye—Bumper. He'd picked up a large dagger and walked over to Beca and looked at her for a moment. Then he unceremoniously jammed the blade into her heart.

The blood-curdling scream that was produced sent shockwaves through everyone in the room. Jesse glanced back at Chloe, who gripped her chest as if she too had been stabbed, and realized that she was also screaming.

Chloe, the second she saw Bumper pick up that knife, knew what was about to happen and she still couldn't have stopped it. Time seemed to move in slow motion for her. Everyone saw him drive that knife into Beca, but Chloe felt it. Deep inside her body, right to her core, she felt the tip of the blade pierce her heart and she crumbled to her knees and cried out in agony as Beca's head fell forward.

He had just killed the girl she loved; he had to die. She summoned the darkest magics she knew.

"Exaudi orationem meam: Osiris, Isis, Hades, I call on thee. My wishes are pure, my mission is true; destroy mine enemies, make their hearts suffer, too," she recited.

Aubrey glanced back at Chloe and saw her once blue eyes turn red and then as black as a raven in the night as she rose to her feet, levitating slightly. Aubrey grabbed Jesse by the sleeve and pulled him out of the way just as Chloe, possessed by utter darkness, unleashed hell upon the Trebles. Bolts of lightning flew from her hands and directly into some of the Trebles' chests. Others exploded into meaty bits of unrecognizable human matter. Tears of blood ran down her face.

"Donald! Check it out!" Bumper called out from where he hid behind a chair near Beca. "I totally did it!"

Jesse looked over and saw that Beca seemed to have regained consciousness, even with the dagger still in her chest.

"But how-" he started to ask Aubrey, when Beca clenched her fists and the chains that held her wrists snapped.

She looked to her right and saw Bumper, now standing behind the chair, looking utterly giddy.

She ripped the chain that held her around the waist and jumped down, walking toward Bumper. Her eyes were nearly as dark as Chloe's.

"Welcome back, Rahknar," Bumper greeted with an over exaggerated bow. "We have such awesome plans for you."

Beca's face morphed from a snarl, to a sadistically sweet, teeth baring smile. Her head tilted to the side, as if she were taking him in adoringly. Her hands raised and held his head gently. Before he knew what was happening, her nails dug into his neck and jaw. She twisted it to the right, to the left, and back to the right, like a combination lock, and ripped his head completely off his body, which collapsed to the floor with a dull thud and a small squish.

"Ipsa vivet; illa prosperatur. I am Hecate," uttered Beca's voice.

Jesse looked to Aubrey again, who had a small, confused smile on her own face.

"What is happening?" he asked, panicked.

"We did it," Aubrey answered. "Hecate was brought to being and fulfilled her purpose!"

Chloe and the other Bellas finished off the last of the Trebles and Hecate infused Beca dropped Bumper's head and removed the dagger from her chest. She stared at the bloody knife before it slipped from her hand. Her eyes fluttered shut and she began to collapse. Hecate's spirit had left her body.

Jesse's eyes widened and he dashed towards his friend, able to catch her before she hit the ground. Aubrey followed immediately after, as did the other Bellas. Chloe kneeled on the ground a good distance away, surrounded by multiple Treble bodies (or what remained of them) as she tried to regain control of herself, the dark magic having taken its massive toll.

"You guys have to do something!" Jesse cried out. "She's bleeding out fast."

He held his hand over Beca's chest wound as best he could in a feeble attempt to stop the bleeding.

The Bellas gathered close and did the best they could—the battle had been such an intense and brutal experience, they were nearly drained. Thankfully their combined efforts were enough to stem the bleeding and Jesse picked her up and carried her out of the Treble house and back to Beta Epsilon. Aubrey, meanwhile, grabbed a still struggling Chloe by the shoulders and with the help of Fat Amy got her up and out of the house as well, the rest of the Bellas in tow. Lily, the last to exit the Treble house closed the door with a small smile.

As she walked away, she whispered, "Ignis" and let the burst of heat from the house engulfed in flames warm her soul.

* * *

As soon as they returned to the sorority house, Aubrey ushered Chloe upstairs and asked Jessica and Ashley to bring them food and water regularly, but to not disturb them otherwise.

"Chloe needs to detox from the black magic she channeled and needs someone with whom she shares a deeply personal connection in order to keep her grounded. She could spiral out of control, otherwise. Or worse…" Aubrey trailed off for a moment and thought about what Chloe might do to herself if left alone. It sent a chill up her spine. She wouldn't let that happen. "I'm not sure how long it'll take, so just set food and water by the door at meal times, knock twice, and leave. For now, make sure that Beca will be alright."

The girls nodded and locked the door to Aubrey's room from the outside. Ashley grabbed some medical supplies from the bathroom and they returned downstairs to where Beca had been placed on one of the couches in the living room.

Kori and Mary Elise brewed some special healing herbs and muddled them into a paste before they applied it to Beca's wound and placed a wad of gauze and tape to act as a bandage over the top.

The rest of the girls continued to draw on the energy of their house to kick-start Beca's healing capabilities.

* * *

The hours ticked by slowly as Jesse paced the living room. Some of the girls filtered in and out. They brought water and food; some whispered more spells. Others just came in and sat with her for a while.

Beca slipped in and out of consciousness several times.

"I'm so sorry, Bec," Jesse whispered as he held her hand tightly. "You gotta keep fighting though, ok? Who else is going to give me shit and keep me honest? You gotta-" his throat closed up a little bit as he thought about what would happen if his best bro actually died. "You gotta stick around."

"It's not your fault, nerd," Beca replied, weakly. "Stop apologizing."

She wasn't lucid after that for days. She would mumble incoherently—though Jesse was sure he made out Chloe's name a few times—then slip back into a dream.

* * *

Chloe laid in the fetal position on the floor as she stared blankly ahead. Initially, she had had no recollection of anything that followed Beca being stabbed by Bumper, but as the hours and the days passed, bits and pieces returned. She remembered the feel of the heat and power of the lightning bolts she had produced. She remembered the hot, sticky feeling of blood splatter upon her face when she caused the explosion of human bodies.

_Beca's dead_, the voices in her mind repeated. _She's dead, and it's all your fault. You deserve this pain. Think of what Beca felt, her body being fought over by two ancient super powers and then physically slaughtered by that boy. It should have been you, Chloe_.

Silent tears streamed down her face as she took shallow breaths.

Aubrey was more than concerned. She'd read all there was about how to help someone who had over dosed on magic, and she'd followed all the steps, but Chloe just seemed to get worse. By week's end, she decided to call for reinforcements via the alumnae pool.

They sent over Gail Abernathy McKadden, CEO and creator of Glam by GAM Cosmetics, and Bella pledge class of-

"The year is not important, dears. What matters is that I'm here," she'd said after introducing herself.

She pulled Aubrey from her room where she and Chloe had been locked away to get the full backstory.

"I'll take it from here, dear," she said gently, with a small pat on Aubrey's shoulder.

Aubrey nodded and locked the door as soon as Gail entered the room. She tried to ignore the screams Chloe emitted over the two weeks it took Gail to help her as best she could.

Chloe was bound to silence when it came to Gail's methods. All she would say was that although it was excruciating and exhausting, it had worked.

* * *

After a week Beca, though still in poor health, had healed enough to pass as a somewhat normal human again; save for the large gash on her torso. She thanked the girls for everything they'd done to help her, and she and Jesse headed back to their dorms.

Once again, they swore to each other to not speak or see Chloe and Aubrey. Beca needed to because she just couldn't handle the pain that came with it; Jesse did it mostly out of loyalty to Beca. There was a big part of him that was still furious with her for all the lies and life threatening situations. But there was also a big[ger] part of him that still loved her.

_Bros before girlfr- ex-girl- Bros before "it's complicated" relationship statuses on Facebook_, he repeated in his head.


	6. Say You'll Remember Me

A/N: So some of you mentioned the original version of the ending feeling abrupt, so maybe this slight revision will help with that...

* * *

**Chapter 6****: Say You'll Remember Me Starin' at the Sunset, Babe**

A week after leaving the Beta Epsilon house, Jesse and Beca stuck to one another like glue. They walked one another to classes when it was feasible. They ate meals in the caf or in their rooms. They studied at the center table in the library. They avoided questions and conversations about the house fire that killed the Trebles.

They'd been shocked to find out that the police had ruled it a tragic accident due to a faulty gas pipe within a few days. But since the house was nothing but ash and rubble by the time the fire department was able to extinguish the flames, and there was very little left in the way of human remains, there wasn't much to investigate.

Beca was grateful, because she hoped that meant everyone would move on quickly. She didn't remember much after being jumped and kidnapped when she walked away from Chloe, other than Bumper's grating voice, _a lot_ of pain, and her own screams. Jesse refused to tell her any details other than that the Bellas did everything possible to help her, and that Chloe was especially heroic. And terrifying. Terrifyingly heroic.

He mentioned, once, that Chloe was taking a sabbatical and was ok. The look on his face, though, was less than reassuring. Beca tried not to care…too much.

She loved Chloe, of course. She wanted Chloe to be ok, to be happy and healthy. But with all the lies and craziness, Beca just couldn't deal with anything that involved her.

* * *

After a month of near codependency on one another, Beca could tell Jesse was missing something, or rather, some_one_. She felt guilty that he gave up his relationship for her sake, twice. Granted, she hadn't asked him to and she wouldn't have, either. He was loyal, in this case to a fault.

"Just go talk to her," she told him during an afternoon shift at the radio station.

He glanced up at her from his laptop and then averted his eyes.

"We agreed-"

"We agreed that me staying away from Chloe was what needed to be done," Beca sighed. "_You _decided that staying away from Aubrey was necessary out of solidarity or whatever 'bro code' excuse you threw out."

Jesse shut his laptop and opened his mouth to argue, but she cut him off again.

"Look, don't think I don't appreciate you being around and there for me when the anxiety hits, and having my back through all of this. But it's obvious that you miss her, dude. And I don't think it's a coincidence that you've been seeing her around campus almost every day this past week."

"Ok, but-"

"Jesse, it's fine." At his dubious look, she pressed more firmly. "_I'm_ fine. You deserve to be happy, ok? And if she's who makes you happy, and you guys can work through your shit, then go! Be happy!"

Jesse vacillated as he weighed the pros and cons. After a few moments, he stood up and wrapped Beca in a tight hug.

"You're the best bro a guy could ask for, Beca Mitchell," he said.

He and Aubrey had a lot to talk about and sort through before they'd be even remotely back to good. But he felt confident. Besides, if all else failed, he'd just cue up that Matchbox 20 song and let it work its magic. Aubrey loved music from the 90s.

And, if necessary, he'd get Benji and the few new members of Oral Magic (the a cappella group they started after the Treblemakers' demise) to sing for her, too.

* * *

_**2 months later…**_

It was late, nearing 1am. Beca set her laptop down onto her bed as she rolled to her right side in an attempt to get comfortable enough to finish watching The Breakfast Club—Jesse had finally pestered her enough to give in and really watch the stupid thing, but she still didn't get the big deal. Sure, the movie was alright, but it wasn't as if she was about to bawl her eyes out over it.

She glanced up and saw Chloe standing in the middle of her room and then-

"What the hell?!" Beca yelled as she scrambled up and practically smashed the light switch into the on position.

"Uh, hey?" Chloe replied, charmingly awkward with a lopsided smile.

"How did you-" Beca started, but stopped midsentence. "No, you know what? Nevermind. I don't care. Just please…"

She pointed towards the door and crawled over the end of her bed and back under the sheets.

Chloe bit her lip and debated whether to try and have this conversation with Beca right then or save it. To be honest, she hadn't expected Beca to be awake. She'd seen the light was off and, based on the numerous previous nights that she'd checked in on Beca—which was just about every night after she'd completed Gail's two weeks of treatments—she was always asleep after midnight. Chloe knew, though, if she waited then it would probably never happen. It was May and finals were a few days away.

"Beca, please just give me a chance to-" she paused when she saw Beca's jaw clench. If she didn't get it out quickly, Beca would probably physically try and throw her out. "I'm so, _so_ sorry. I never meant for you to get hurt, ok? I tried to protect you as best as I could. And I wanted to tell you so badly what was happening, but if I had you would've run off…and now that I'm saying this I realize that that happened anyway. God…" Chloe felt tears sting her eyes and trail down her cheeks when she remembered the sight and the sound of Beca getting stabbed in the heart. She looked at the other girl whose face remained stoic. "I- I thought you were dead. No matter how many times Aubrey told me you were ok, I didn't believe her. Because how could you be? He stabbed you through the heart and I- Beca, I swear I felt it."

Something pinged in the back of Beca's mind—she hadn't just heard her own scream, she'd heard Chloe's too. She bit hard on her tongue to keep from saying a word.

"I know I can't say or do anything that will ever take away that pain. All I can do is tell you how sorry I am. And how much I loved you, _do_ love you. And hope that, maybe one day, you can try to forgive me and we can start over. Whether that's just as friends or more—and I know I'm grasping at straws with that."

Chloe took a deep breath to calm herself. Beca's expression hadn't changed at all during her whole monologue. In fact, Beca had laid back down and stared at the ceiling near the end of it. So, Chloe nodded once to herself and headed, slowly, for the door.

Just as she touched the knob, she heard a soft, "Stay."

"Are you sure?" Chloe asked with trepidation, not taking her eyes off the door.

Beca leaned up on her elbows slightly to look at her.

"It's late and there are probably creepers running around campus," she said after a moment and laid back down.

Chloe smiled to herself and turned the light off before she removed her shoes and coat and climbed into Beca's bed, careful not to touch her too much.

After about 15 minutes, she heard Beca's breathing even out. She turned her head and looked at the back of Beca's head. The moment reminded her a lot of the one just after Initiation.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered.

"You should be," Beca responded gruffly, obviously just on the verge of sleep.

She winced somewhat at the reply, but was surprised when Beca blindly reached back and grabbed Chloe's arm, wrapping it around her midsection.

Beca knew she and Chloe had a boatload of baggage to sort through. She also knew that, at the end of it, they might not be able to fix all that had been broken. But in that moment, she just needed to feel Chloe around her: her heartbeat, her breath, her warmth, her everything.

Everything else could wait until later.

* * *

_**November 2013**_

Beca laid on Chloe's bed, her head in Chloe's lap, and watched her pen spin in the air. Her face creased in contemplation.

"You bleed me for months, and I legitimately almost die. Now you have seemingly infinite power," she said and turned to face Chloe, motioning towards the still spinning pen. "And this is how you use it? I feel cheap."

"Oh, you think you could do better?" Chloe smirked at Beca's pout.

They had come a long way in the past few months. It wasn't an easy road to travel to regain Beca's trust and to try and rebuild the foundation of friendship they had. There had been nights of screaming fights and sobbing embraces. There had been times where Beca called her or vice versa in the middle of the night because of a nightmare that revisited that horrible evening at the Treblemakers' house. Beca had returned to Seattle for summer break, so she and Chloe could only talk via phone or Skype. It was for the best, though.

The separation gave each of them the ability to sort out their priorities and what they wanted from and for one another. It allowed them to work out a better form of communication and develop a new, deeper bond.

They returned to Barden in late August strictly as friends. They got back together at the Bellas' Halloween party two weeks prior, after realizing there was too much pull to fight against anymore.

Of course, Aubrey still didn't get the attraction, and Jesse had given Chloe quite the long bro code lecture, but all that mattered to Chloe was that she and Beca were good. Happy. Healthy, in all senses of the word.

"Uh, yeah," Beca chuckled. "I definitely could."

"I guess we'll never know."

Beca sat up quickly and leaned in, almost touching Chloe's lips with her own.

"Oh really?" she said, eyebrow cocked.

Beca raked her fingers through Chloe's hair and gently cradled the back of her head before she closed the small distance between them, placing the softest kiss on her lips.

Chloe's eyes drifted shut immediately at the gentle touch.

For a moment, she felt the temperature in her room rise at least 20 degrees. She would swear that she heard the ocean and felt the salt-water breeze on her skin.

When Chloe opened her eyes, they were still in her room. But there, on the floor, were two pineapples, two coconuts, and a box of Honolulu Cookie Company cookies.

She looked back and forth between Beca and the items on the floor several times before she spoke.

"But how-"

"I'm thinking of changing my name to Sabrina," Beca mused with a light smile and a wink.

"You're nearing 20, so your teenage witch days are numbered," she responded, not missing a beat.

Apparently Beca had gained some powers of her own from the whole ordeal.

_I wonder if Aubrey knew that could happen_, Chloe wondered.

It would certainly make for a fun surprise on their double date with Aubrey and Jesse later that night.

* * *

"POWERS?!" Aubrey yelled, then quickly slapped her hands over her mouth as she remembered they were in the middle of a fairly crowded restaurant.

"Aubrey, geez," Chloe scolded and glanced around to note how much attention had been drawn to their table—not much, thankfully. She had hoped that by telling Aubrey in public that her outburst would've been more subdued but clearly she'd overestimated her friend's restraint.

Aubrey took a deep breath and tried again, leveling Beca—who, to her credit, was valiantly trying to keep a straight face—with a severe glare. Jesse noticed and immediately tried to sooth his girlfriend with a warm, comforting squeeze to her hand which was clenched tightly in a fist near the edge of the table. He was pretty curious, though. Beca hadn't mentioned anything about this to him.

"What do you mean she has powers?" she said through clenched teeth.

"Well," Chloe began, looking to Beca with a small smile and then back to Aubrey. "She took me on a 10 second trip to Hawaii earlier."

"Beca, would you care to elaborate?" Aubrey pointedly inquired. "Like, how long you've known about these…abilities?"

Beca fidgeted with her napkin a little, unsure of how to explain it.

"Well, after I got back to Seattle I noticed that if I thought really hard about something, like the TV remote or whatever, that it would levitate over to me. Sort of. It was iffy at first. I figured it was some kind of fluke. Like I had some residual juju from housing not one, but two, supernatural beings and that it would go away in a week or so. But then I kept testing it, and I just seemed to be getting better, so to speak, at controlling it. By the end of the summer I could jump from room to room," she shrugged. "Didn't you know that this could happen?"

Based on the look she got in return, Aubrey definitely did not know.

"That's so awesome," Jesse breathed out in awe.

Aubrey whipped her head to her left and glared at him, "Did you know about this? Did you know and not tell me? Jesse Swanson, so help me-"

Jesse's eyes widened and he put his hands up in a surrender motion as he shook his head.

"Babe, I promise. She didn't say a word to me about this!"

"I didn't tell anyone, Aubrey," Beca jumped in, attempting to save Jesse. "Like I said, I thought it would go away. But I mean, it kind of makes sense, right? Harry Potter absorbed some of Voldemort's powers when he tried to kill him, right?"

"This is not a fictional universe, Beca," Aubrey rolled her eyes and then gave Chloe a look that read like: _Honestly, this girl?_

"Right, because everything that happened this past year has screamed completely ordinary," Beca tossed back.

Aubrey wanted to rebut, but Beca, unfortunately, had a point…

"I'm making a call to the Alumnae office tomorrow morning. They need to know and explain how they could have possibly not foreseen this consequence. But this means you're back to all of our meetings, Beca! You have a lot of work to make up for from missing the adoption drive," she smirked.

Aubrey may have had to tolerate Beca for Chloe's sake, and if she was honest Beca wasn't _completely_ awful. But that didn't mean she couldn't still have a little fun in the form of pulling rank in the sorority.

Beca had been on the verge of arguing that she had a damn good reason for missing said pet adoption drive, re: almost _dying_, but Chloe's soft touch to her knee stopped her.

She glanced over to Chloe's appeasing eyes and heard her whisper, "Pick your battles, Bec."

Nodding, Beca leaned back in her chair and rolled her eyes. She wasn't necessarily sure she wanted to stay in Beta Epsilon Lambda Lambda Alpha, but at least she had Chloe to take her mind off things.

_And a bunch of badass magical abilities to mess with Aubrey_, she thought.

Yeah, maybe it wouldn't be so terrible after all.

_**The End**_


End file.
